Under the Manhattan Lights
by misstaraQ
Summary: Could a simple, everyday accident lead to love? Future AU, Brooke & Lucas, Nathan & Haley, some Jake & Peyton.
1. Feeling a Moment

1Under the Manhattan Lights - She bumped into him on the street... literally. They met again later at a coffee shop. Could a simple, everyday accident lead to love? Brooke & Lucas.

_Author's note: This is one of my first fanfics. If you think it's completely horrible or it's got potential, please let me know either way by reviewing! Oh, and anything written in italics is usually a thought, unless I note it otherwise. Thanks for reading!_

Disclaimer: I don't own anything.

Chapter 1 - Feeling a Moment

Beep. Beep. Beep. Beep.

Twenty-year-old Brooke Davis rolled over and hit the snooze button on the sleek black alarm clock that the Carlyle hotel in New York City provided for her. She knew she had to get up, but was never one to jump out of bed, so hitting the snooze button a few times was just normal. After what felt like the millionth time that the piercing beeping noise filled the room, Brooke happened to open her eyes and glance at the time. _8:11._

"Shit!" She screamed as she scrambled out from underneath the covers and ran into the bathroom. At nine o'clock Brooke had an interview for an internship at Seventeen Magazine and it was really important that she made it on time. She took a quick shower and immediately got out and started blow drying her hair. As soon as that was done, she plugged in her straightener and went into the bedroom looking for something to wear.

_Way to go, Brooke. Smart move by not unpacking last night. _She told herself.

She unzipped her pink suitcase and grabbed a dressy pink tank and a pair of brown slacks. Noticing neither was ironed, she went into the closet and found an ironing board and an iron and turned it on while she searched for a pair of shoes. After flinging them here, there and everywhere, she found a pair of brown Marc Jacobs pumps that matched perfectly. She then returned to the ironing board and quickly ironed each item. She slipped them on and went back into the bathroom.

After 10 minutes of straightening her hair, putting on makeup and adding a few accessories, Brooke grabbed her bag and suitcase before running out the door as fast she could in her heels. She took the elevator down to the first floor, and quickly walked across the lobby, her heels clacking against the shiny black marble floors. She greeted the doormen outside the hotel and easily hailed a taxi.

_8:40. This is good. I'll be perfectly on time._

Or so she thought. As they pulled up to West 57th Street, there seemed to be a traffic jam. The cab sat still for a full five minutes before Brooke decided that since the office was only down the street, she'd just get out. She paid the driver and got out, practically twisting her ankle as she got out onto the uneven pavement. She got up onto the sidewalk and started walking down the sidewalk as her cell phone rang. She continued walking as she searched through her Dior bag for the ringing object. Not looking ahead to where she was going, she bumped into a man in an white button-up shirt and khaki shorts. Her bag fell to the ground causing everything to fall out of it.

"Omigod! I'm so sorry! I wasn't paying attention to where I was going!" Brooke apologized as she was bent down picking up what had fallen from her purse.

"It's okay. Let me help you." The man said as he bent down next to her, gathering things and handing them to her. They stood back up in unison and looked at him, noticing his short blonde hair and his piercing blue eyes through her big brown ones. It almost sent a shiver down her spine.

"Thank you." She told him as she started walking again. "I'm sorry again."

"No big deal." He replied, standing there watching her walk away.

Forgetting about what had just happened, she brushed herself off and walked into the office building confidently, hoping that everything would go well. Luckily, Brooke didn't get nervous about these type of things. The gold-lined revolving glass doors brought her to a lobby, and she walked up to the front desk.

"Hello. I'm Brooke Davis. I'm here for an interview with Courtney Jacobs for Seventeen Magazine." Brooke told the secretary.

"Okay. Seventeen's offices are on the third floor. There will be a desk right in front of you as you get off the elevator, and the secretary there will tell you where to go." The woman told her.

"Thank you." Brooke said, strolling towards the elevator. The elevator opened and she was the only one in it, so she pushed the number 3 and leaned against the wall until she arrived. As the doors began to open she could see _Seventeen_ in big bold letters across the wall, with a modern-looking desk underneath it.The place was gorgeous.

_Wow. I would kill to work here._

She casually made her way to the desk and told the secretary the same thing she told the previous one, and she was soon brought to the office of Courtney Jacobs, an editor of the magazine. The woman seemed very personable. Brooke handed the woman her resume, and a series of questions about her college and previous work experience followed.

Once everything was done, Courtney explained to Brooke, "Okay. Thank you so much for coming. Someone will be in touch with you within the next two days."

"Sounds great. Thank you so much." Brooke said, smiling.

She walked out of the building feeling good about what had just gone on. She then decided she needed a cup of coffee since she didn't get to have one yet because of her crazy morning. She remembered that she saw a coffee shop on her way, so she walked down a few blocks into Natalie's Café. After ordering a large coffee, she decided to sit down at a table so she could read the documents that Seventeen had just given her.

While flipping a page over, she happened to look up and saw the guy that she bumped into an hour ago sitting with a darker-haired guy and a light brown-haired girl at a booth across the room. She watched him for a second and then he caught her stare. She quickly looked back down at her paper, hoping he didn't notice her. Trying hard to not look back at him again and pretending to be reading her papers intently, it wasn't until she was about to get going that she saw him walking over to her.

"You know, in this huge city, it's not very often you see a stranger twice." The guy told her as he sat down in the chair across from him.

"Well, yes, but we're in the same area as we were before." Brooke responded, still not looking at him. "How do you know that seat's not taken?"

"I've been watching you vicariously through my friend over there," He said, looking over to the direction of the booth he had. She looked up at him, then over to the booth, where the other two people were still sitting and talking. "And from what I heard I don't think anybody's been sitting here, nor does it look like you're waiting for someone to arrive."

"Well, you're very clever." She said, putting her paper down and leaning forward so that she held her head in her hands as her elbows rested on the table. "So, what's your name, anyway?"

"I'm Lucas. Lucas Scott. How about you?" He responded.

"Brooke Davis, nice to meet you...again." She told him, extending a hand to shake his. "Do you live here?"

"I'm currently a student at New York University, but I came from North Carolina." He told her. Her eyes widened.

"No way!" She exclaimed. "I'm from North Carolina too. Where about?"

"Tree Hill. It's a small town not far from the coast. Where are you from?"

"Raleigh. Small world, huh?" She said, smiling.

"Definitely." He agreed. "Do you live here, now?"

"Actually, I was just at an interview for an internship with Seventeen magazine, that's why I was in such a rush this morning and ran into you, and if I get it, I'll be moving here and transferring to the Fashion Institute of Technology from University of North Carolina in September." She explained.

"Wow. Sounds good. What year are you in?" He asked.

"I just finished my junior year." She told him.

"Me too!" He exclaimed, laughing.

"Really? That's so funny." She said back.

The two talked for another twenty minutes, throwing in some obvious flirting. Soon the two other people that were sitting with Lucas came over to the table to tell him they were leaving. The dark haired man tapped Lucas on the shoulder.

"We're gonna head out, are you going to join us?" He asked Lucas.

"Oh yeah, but wait, let me introduce you to Brooke." He replied. "Brooke, this is Nathan and Haley, my brother and my sister-in-law, and Nathan and Haley, this is Brooke."

"Hi, how are you?" Brooke said, getting up to shake hands.

"Good. Nice to meet you." Nathan responded. Haley smiled.

"Brooke's actually from Raleigh back home in North Carolina, and she's also a junior." Lucas told them.

"Really? What a small world." Haley said.

"Yeah, that's actually what we just said before." Brooke told her.

"Go ahead out to the car, I'll meet you guys there in a second." Lucas told Nathan and Haley.

Brooke and Lucas sat back down for a second to finish their conversation.

"Well, I'm not usually one to do this, but since we seem to be so much alike, how about we grab dinner sometime?" He questioned her, hoping she'd say yes.

"That sounds great. I'll give you my number." Brooke said, grabbing a pen and paper from her bag and writing it down. She then handed it to him. "There you go."

"Thanks. I'll call you soon." Lucas said, getting up.

"Okay. Bye." Brooke said as she watched him until he was out of her sight. She smiled thinking about what had just went on and how crazy it was they had to many similarities. She hoped he'd call soon because she really wanted to see him again. She then picked up her belongings and made her way back to the hotel.


	2. Start of Something New

**Author's Note: **Thanks to everyone that reviewed! I really appreciate it! Anyway, here's chapter 2. As always, read & review to tell me what you think! Thanks again!

Chapter 2 - Start of Something New

Brooke stood at the window of her hotel the next afternoon, talking on the phone to her friend Peyton Sawyer, who was back in Raleigh.

"Well they told me yesterday they'd be in touch within the next two days, so it's either going to be today or tomorrow, so until I know, I won't be coming back home... Yes...No, I don't think so...Really?...Okay, talk to you soon then...bye." Brooke hung up the phone. She didn't bother telling her about Lucas because she figured it wasn't anything definite yet. Just as she put the her phone down on the bed so she could go get dressed to do some shopping, it rang again, and a random number came up on the caller I.D.

_Hm...well it's gotta be either Seventeen or Lucas._ She told herself, secretly hoping it was Lucas.

"Hello?" She said, into the phone.

"Brooke?" A man asked.

"Yes, this is her." She responded.

_Sounds like Lucas..._

"Oh, hey. It's Lucas." He said.

_Yesssssss._

"Hey, what's going on?" She asked, sitting down on the bed.

"Not much, how about you?" He responded.

"Nothing really, just about to get dressed so I can grab lunch and do some shopping." She told him.

"That sounds fun. Shopping's one thing you definitely have to do while you're in New York." He said.

"So I've heard." Brooke said.

"So anyway, I know this is short notice, but I was calling to see if maybe you wanted to go to dinner tonight? I figured since you might be going back to North Carolina that we'd get to see each other. But if you can't it's no big deal." Lucas asked her, a little worried.

"No, that's actually perfect. What time do you want to go?" She replied.

"How about I pick you up at 7 and we'll head to this great little restaurant in Soho. Nothing too fancy, but really good food." He told her. "Where are you staying?"

"I'm at the Carlyle. Room 739." She told him.

"Okay. I'll see you at 7 then?" He asked.

"Yup. See you then."

"Okay, bye."

"Bye." She added, hanging up the phone.

_Wow. I have absolutely nothing to wear._

Realizing that, she quickly got up and put on a Juicy sweatsuit as she headed out in search for lunch and the perfect outfit.

---

Brooke returned to her room at around 5 o'clock, leaving her just enough time to get ready. She took a shower, curled her hair and put on make-up and then got dressed in the new clothes she bought. She slipped into a pair of dark-washed jeans and then put on a paisley-printed tank, along with a short, white, button-up sweater. Her new white and pink wedges followed. While deciding what necklace to wear, she heard a knock at the door, knowing it was Lucas. She picked the silver heart one and clasped it around her neck while walking to the door. She opened the door to see Lucas, wearing a burgundy button up and a pair of jeans, holding a bouquet of daisies.

_Aw, what a cutie. And at least I'm not underdressed. _

"Hey! Come on in!" She told him.

"Thank you. These are for you." He said, handing her the flowers.

"Aw, thank you. How did you know I love daisies?" She asked as she went to find something to put them in water with.

"Just luck, sweetheart." He told her. "This is a really nice hotel. And apparently a really big room."

"I know, I really don't need all of this room. That's my parents for you, though. Only the best." She told him.

"That's good, though." He said.

"Yeah, I guess. It's just that they think that putting me in the biggest luxury hotel in New York City is enough to keep me satisfied. You see, they live in California and they honestly don't care about me. I was raised by a nanny, and all they do is send me lots of money. I'm lucky if I see them once or twice a year, really. Anyway, I won't bore you with my random stories, so I'm ready to go if you are." She told him.

"I'm ready." He responded. They walked out of the hotel room and into the hallway.

"I don't really have the greatest parents either. Actually, that's a lie. My mom's the best. I'm so lucky I have her and I admire her so much. My dad didn't want anything to do with me or my mom when he found out my mom was pregnant with me, so my mom raised me by herself. Then when I was in high school he all of a sudden wanted to be nice to me. I didn't fall for it though."

"Oh, I'm sorry, Lucas." Brooke said, concerned.

"Ah, don't feel sorry for me. I'm fine." He said, reassuring her.

By this time they had made their way down to the lobby and out the front doors, where Lucas had parked his black BMW convertible. He hit the button on his key chain to unlock the doors and Brooke laughed.

"What's so funny?" He asked, smiling.

"I have the exact same car, only in white." She told him. He laughed. They got in and made their way to Ashley's Restaurant. The sat at a two-person table and ordered drinks and dinner. Lucas told Brooke all about him and his life, including how Nathan and Haley got married in high school, how him and Nathan are half brothers, and how his mom married his biological father's brother. Brooke was really intrigued by all of it. The poor guy really never had a fantastic life, but then again neither did she. She understood where he was coming from, so she then told him all about herself when he was finished. She told him about her friend Peyton and about how she had a really serious boyfriend for three years and she swore they'd get married, but after high school it all ended. By now they had finished dinner.

"Well, that was fabulous." Brooke said about the food.

"Told you it was good food." Lucas replied.

The waitress put the check down on the table, and Lucas grabbed it before Brooke could.

"Let me pay for half." Brooke told him, getting her wallet out from her bag.

"No, no, no. I've got it." Lucas told her, handing the check back to the waitress with his credit card.

"But, I," Brooke said before Lucas cut her off.

"I insist, Brooke." He said. She gave in.

"Okay, but at least let me get ice cream for the two of us." She insisted.

"Deal." Lucas said as he signed the receipt the waitress had now given back to him. "Shall we go then?"

"Sure." Brooke said, smiling.

They left the restaurant and then Brooke stopped.

"Wait." She said.

"What's wrong?" He asked, concerned.

"I said I'd get ice cream but I don't know a good place."

"Ha, that's all? Don't worry, I've lived here for almost three years. I know a good place."

"Okay." She said, trusting him.

They got into the car and Lucas brought them to Central Park.

"They have ice cream here?" Brooke asked.

"Of course. There's this really great vendor that I come to all the time. I practically could call the guy my friend." He told her. She laughed. They walked onto a path in the park, and Lucas hesitantly grabbed her hand. She quickly complied, reassuring him by squeezing it. It couldn't have been a more perfect setting. The sun was setting and the sky was shades of pink and purple. Both Brooke and Lucas were having quite a good evening. They finally made their way to the vendor.

"Lucas!" Said the man behind the cart.

"Hey, Dan." Lucas greeted him.

"Who's the pretty lady?" Dan asked, referring to Brooke.

"This is Brooke. I met her yesterday. She's actually from North Carolina, too." Lucas told him.

"Hm...Interesting. You two make a lovely couple." Dan said, smiling at Brooke. She blushed. "Anyway, what will it be?"

"I'll have a chocolate cone. What do you want, Brooke?" Lucas asked her.

"Hm. A medium vanilla cup with chocolate sprinkles." She told him. Dan prepared their orders and handed them each an ice cream, and Brooke handed him a ten-dollar bill.

"It's on the house, pretty lady." Dan said.

"No, take it." Brooke said.

"Nope. It's on me." Dan repeated.

Brooke smiled and put the bill in the tip cup as she and Lucas continued down the path with their ice cream. They talked some more and then sat on a bench. Suddenly Brooke's phone rang. She jumped at the loud ringing. Lucas looked concerned.

"Sorry, I'm a jumpy person." Brooke told him as she looked through her bag for the phone.

"Apparently." Lucas said, chuckling.

"Oh! This might be Seventeen, do you mind if I take it?" Brooke asked.

"Of course not. Go ahead." He told her.

"Thanks." She said, opening the flip phone and hitting the answer button.

"Hello?" Brooke said.

"Hello, may I please speak with Brooke Davis?" a woman asked from the other end.

"This is she." Brooke said.

"Oh, hello. This is Daphne from Seventeen. I apologize for calling so late, but we were so busy today that I didn't get a chance to call from work so I figured I'd just call now. And if they find out I didn't call you I'm probably going to get in trouble. But don't worry about me..." Daphne explained.

"No problem." Brooke said, laughing a little.

Lucas mouthed, "Seventeen?" Brooke nodded, crossing her fingers.

"So anyway, I'm just calling to tell you that Courtney liked you a lot and felt that you had a lot of potential and would like to hire you as an intern. You don't have to decide right away if you want to take the job, you can call us back within the next few days."

"Oh! Thank you! No, I'd like to take it! Definitely!" Brooke said happily. Lucas smiled.

"Great. We'll probably have you start next week, so we'll be calling you within the next few days. Thanks!" Daphne told her.

"Okay. Thank you." Brooke said, hanging up the phone.

"Congratulations!" Lucas said, giving her a hug.

"Thank you. Wow, I'm so relieved now." Brooke said.

"So does this mean you're going to be moving here?" He asked.

"Yes, it does." Brooke said.

"Good. I was kind of getting worried that I'd never really see you again." He told her.

"Well, you don't have to worry anymore. Now that I know, I'll be going back home tomorrow for a few days and I'll probably be back on Saturday to move in. Luckily I found an apartment that I begged the agent to hold for me. Hm...I should probably call her." She said.

"Okay. So do you want me to take you home?" Lucas asked.

"Yeah, that'd be good actually." Brooke replied.

They walked hand-in-hand back to Lucas's car. Brooke was excited and rambling about it the whole way back to the hotel. Lucas parked the car and walked her back to the room.

"Well, thank you for an amazing evening. I'll call you when I get back here on Saturday." Brooke told Lucas as they stood at the door.

"Absolutely. Call me so I can help you move in." He told her.

"That'd be great." Brooke said smiling. They stared at each other for a second, then leaned in for a tender kiss. They held it for a second and then broke apart.

"Okay. I'll talk to you on Saturday then." Brooke said. "Thanks again."

"Sounds good." Lucas said, walking away. Brooke closed the door and leaned against it.

_Wow. A fantastic guy, a great job, and I've got that killer apartment. I don't think this could get any better._

Brooke smiled gleefully as she went into the bedroom to change. She called the agent for the apartment and then Peyton to tell her about the job and Lucas and called it a night at around 11 o'clock.


	3. Back Where I Come From

**Author's Note:** Thanks for the reviews! I just wanted to mention that all the chapters are named after songs, so the first chapter was Feeling a Moment by Feeder, the second was Start of Something New by Troy and Gabriella from High School Musical (haha) and this one is Back Where I Come From by Kenny Chesney, because I love him and I was at his concert about two weeks ago. Anyway, hope you enjoy! Let me know what you think!

Chapter 3 - Back Where I Come From

The following morning, Brooke frantically shoved everything into her suitcase hoping she wouldn't miss her flight. Because she bought new stuff, she was barely able to fit everything in her three suitcases. She threw on jeans and a t-shirt, put her hair in a bun and grabbed a pair of Dior sunglasses from her bag before walking out the door. The car service she called was waiting outside, so the driver put her things in the trunk and brought her to the airport.

About two hours later, Brooke was in the airport in Durham, North Carolina and was waiting for her luggage. As soon as she got it, she found Peyton, who was picking her up.

"B. Davis!" Peyton exclaimed when she saw her.

"P. Sawyer!" Brooke said back, also using their nicknames.

"How was the flight?" Peyton asked.

"Fine. Can't complain." Brooke said.

"That's good." Peyton said. They went out of the airport to Peyton's old red convertible and put the top down.

"I can't believe you're only gonna be here for another few days and then you're leaving again! And this time for good!" Peyton said, frowning.

"I know, I know. It's kind of upsetting and everything but I really think I'm going to like New York. I think I'm going to love this job, and I'm hoping that things will continue with Lucas." Brooke said.

"You really seem to like this guy, Brooke." Peyton said.

"That's because I really do." Brooke told her.

"That's great, Brooke." Peyton said, happy for her friend. Ever since Brooke and Adam, her ex-boyfriend that she dated for three years, broke up, Brooke never really had a desire to meet a new guy.

"Yeah. I'm happy so far. I just hope he actually likes me. Otherwise I'm going to feel like an idiot. But he wouldn't have asked to see me again if he didn't, so I'm not worried." Brooke told her.

"Exactly." Peyton agreed.

The two girls then blasted music and sang as they went home, trying to embrace the time they had left before Brooke had to leave.

---

After a couple days of fun with Peyton, it was finally Saturday and Brooke had to leave. She had ordered all new furniture and had it delivered to her new apartment, along with boxes filled with pictures, books and other random things that were in her drawers, so all she had to do was bring her clothes and other important necessities. Brooke and Peyton both sat on Brooke's bed when they were all done packing.

"I really wish I could drive you to the airport. Then I could wait another hour before I'd have to say goodbye. I hate having to go to a wake for someone I don't even know." Peyton said, laughing slightly while tears were already forming in her eyes.

"Aw, Peyt. I'm gonna miss you so much." Brooke said, starting to cry. Since the girls were 8, they practically lived at each other's houses and after high school both went to the same college. It was a traumatic event for both of them for Brooke to be leaving. They sat there, hugging each other for ten minutes, before Brooke pulled away when the car outside honked.

"I've gotta go." She said, giving Peyton another hug.

"Okay. Be safe!" Peyton said, wiping her eyes.

"I'll try. I'll see you in August when you come to visit!" Brooke said, trying to smile. "But until then, call me everyday."

"Deal." They hugged each other one last time before Brooke left with her suitcases and Peyton went to her car. Brooke cried as she watched Peyton drive in the other direction, and then again when she saw the "You are now leaving Tree Hill" sign. She then took some deep breaths and looked on the bright side. She was going to have a great time in New York.

---

Brooke stood inNewarkAirportwaiting for her car service to show up. It was supposed to be there over an hour ago, but there was no sign of it showing up. She dialed the number and a lady picked up.

"Freemont Car Service." The woman said.

"Hi, this is Brooke Davis. I was supposed to be picked up an hour ago but my car's not here." Brooke told her politely.

"Hm...let me see...oh, somebody made a mistake. My computer says that you have a car for next Saturday." the woman told her. Brooke closed her eyes in frustration.

"Fantastic." Brooke said sarcastically. "How long until you can get me a car out here?"

"Well, all of our cars are booked, so it would be at least another two hours." The woman told her.

"Damnit. Okay forget it then and cancel my service for next week. And I'm definitely not paying for it so don't even think about sending me a bill." Brooke said annoyed as she quickly hung up the phone. She looked around. She went over to the information desk and asked for a list of numbers. After the third person telling her she'd be stuck for another couple of hours, her phone rang. It was Lucas.

"Hello?" she answered.

"Hey, Brooke." Lucas said.

"Hey, Luke."

"Are you at your apartment?"

"No, actually. I'm kind of having a little problem. My car service never showed up because apparently it was booked for the wrong day, so I'm still stuck at the airport." She explained.

"I'll come and get you." Lucas told her.

"No, it's okay. I'll find a way home. You really don't have to, you're probably busy." She told him.

"No, I'm leaving now, I'll be there soon."

"Are you sure?" She asked.

"Positive."

"Oh, Thank you so much, Luke."

"Not a problem. I'll call you when I get there."

"Okay." She said, hanging up.

Half an hour later, Lucas was helping Brooke get her things into his trunk.

"Thank you so much, Luke. I don't know what I'd do without you." She thanked him for the millionth time.

"Don't worry about it. Now we can just go straight to the apartment." He said. "By the way, if you flew up here, how is your car gonna get here?"

"My parents found some, like, ferry thing that will bring it up here. I don't know much except that I have to pick it up on Monday." Brooke told him.

"That's kinda cool." Lucas said.

"Yeah. I figured I probably wouldn't even need a car, but I guess it's better to have one than not, especially with work and stuff."

"Yeah."

They finally made it to Brooke's apartment, which was more like a penthouse. Luckily Lucas knew where he was going, because Brooke had no idea.

"Wow. This is nice." Lucas said as he looked up at the sky-high building.

"Yeah, I fell in love with it, actually." Brooke told him. They brought Brooke's stuff up to the stairs to find the apartment filled with boxes and new furniture.

"Looks like we've got work to do." Lucas said, looking around.

"Yeah, I guess so. Thanks for helping me out." Brooke said.

"Of course." Lucas replied.

After hours and hours of unpacking and placing furniture, the place was finally starting to come together. They had the greatest time unpacking, as things in boxes brought up old memories for the both of them, and they were constantly laughing.

"I'm hungry." Brooke said. "Wanna go get something to eat?"

"Actually, that reminds me. I forgot to tell you earlier that Nathan and Haley want to, re-meet you, let's say, so they asked if you and I would want to go to their apartment for dinner. They live down the hall from me, so we can ditch them after dinner and go back to my place if you'd like. But if you don't feel like it, that's totally cool, too." Lucas explained.

"That sounds good. As long as you give me twenty minutes to fix myself up."

"Of course. I'm gonna finish unloading some of these boxes."

Twenty minutes later, Brooke appeared at the doorway of the second bedroom that Lucas was currently setting up.

"Wow. Somebody looks gorgeous." Lucas told her.

"Oh, please. This is nothing. If I had more time I'd actually do my hair better." Brooke told him.

"You're perfect. Let's go then." Lucas said, grabbing her hand as the walked out the door.

An hour later, Brooke and Lucas were at Nathan and Haley's, sitting around the table. Brooke really liked them, and they seemed to really like Brooke. Lucas then got up.

"Alright, let's get going, Brooke. The newlyweds of almost five years like to still pretend like it's their honeymoon after 9 o'clock." Lucas told her. She laughed.

"Shut up. You'd be the same way if you were married to someone as hot as my wife over here." Nathan said.

"Sure." Lucas replied.

"Thank you so much for dinner." Brooke said. She hugged them both and they left for Lucas's apartment.

"Okay, I'm just going to warn you that my apartment's not half as nice as yours, but I do keep it clean." Lucas said as he put his key in the lock.

"It's not like I'd never speak to you again if I found out you lived in a cardboard box, so let's not worry about it." Brooke told him.

He opened the door and brought Brooke in. Brooke really liked his taste in design.

"Wow. I really like your place." She said.

"Thanks. I try." He responded. "Sit down, make yourself at home."

She sat down on the brown couch in front of the television as Lucas yelled to her from the kitchen.

"You want a drink?" Lucas asked.

"Yeah, that'd be good." She replied.

"Pepsi okay?"

"Yup."

A minute later he made his way to the living room and motioned for her to get up so he could show her the rest of the apartment. She rose from the couch and he handed her the drink.

"Okay. So this is the living room/dining room/study. And that's the kitchen. And my bedroom and the bathroom is over here." He said, bringing her into a small hallway with two doors. He opened the one for the bathroom, then the one to the bedroom.

"Sorry I didn't make my bed, it's just that I was going to until a certain somebody called me begging for a ride from the airport this morning." Lucas said, joking around.

"Omigod, Luke! I'm so sorry!" Brooke said, feeling bad.

"Calm down, I'm kidding. The one thing I never do is make my bed. Probably because I'm the only one ever in here. Besides that the rest of the place is neat and tidy." Lucas said.

"It is. I like it." Brooke said.

"Okay." Lucas said as he walked out of the room and Brooke followed him. "You wanna watch a movie?"

"Sure." Brooke said. "What do you have?"

"Well, I've got like, four DVDs. So since their all my favorites and you really can't go wrong, I'll let you pick."

Brooke kneeled down to find the four DVDs on the shelf below the T.V. _Anchorman, Pearl Harbor, Small Soldiers, _and _Foul Play._

"Wow. For having only four movies, I must admit that I like all of them. I think we'll watch Pearl Harbor though. It's so good." Brooke told him.

"Okay. Pop it in the DVD player." Lucas responded.

Lucas was sitting on the couch and Brooke sat next to him. He grabbed the blanket that was laying over the back of the chair and covered them both in it. Brooke leaned in closer to him and he wrapped his arm around her. The movie started playing andhalway through,they both were fast asleep.


	4. It's Gonna Be Love

**Author's Note:** Thanks for the reviews! I seemed to have made a mistake in the last chapter. I don't know if anyone picked up on it, but I wrote that Brooke cried when she saw the "You are now leaving Tree Hill" sign, and it should have been "You are now leaving Raleigh" because I said in the first chapter that Brooke was from Raleigh. So I apologize. Anyway, this chapter is called It's Gonna Be Love by Mandy Moore, and it's a little shorter than normal, but it's my favorite so far just because it's cute and fluffy. So I hope you enjoy! Read and review, even if it's one word! Thanks!

Chapter 4 - It's Gonna Be Love

Lucas woke up to a dark room and found a sleeping Brooke in his lap. The movie was obviously long over, since a black screen appeared in front of him, and he looked over at the clock. _2:57._

He sat there, trying to figure out if he should wake Brooke up. He figured it'd be better to wake her than not, so pushed some hair off her face and said her name.

"Brooke...Brooke, wake up." He whispered. She stirred and then opened her eyes and freaked out a little because she didn't immediately register where she was. She looked around and then got up, realizing she was in Lucas's lap.

"What time is it?" She asked groggily.

"3 o'clock in the morning. We fell asleep watching the movie." He told her.

"Oh, crap. I'm sorry. I'll get going." Brooke said, getting up.

"No, no, no. Don't go. You don't even have a car, it's already really late, so unless you have to be home, I'd feel better if you stayed here." Lucas said. She hesitated.

"Are you sure?" Brooke asked, still half asleep.

"Of course." He assured her.

"Okay. Thank you. I promise I'll be out of your hair first thing in the morning." She told him.

"Not if I have anything to do with it." He told her. "Come on, I'll get you a pair of sweats you can sleep in."

Stumbling a bit, Brooke grabbed Lucas's hand as he brought her to his bedroom and handed her a pair of navy sweatpants and a grey hoody.

"Here. Put these on and sleep in my bed. I'll crash on the couch." He said.

"No, I'll sleep on the couch. It's fine." Brooke said.

"No, I insist. My bed's comfortable and I just put on a new pair of sheets yesterday, so I've only slept in them once. You're good to go. I'll see you in the morning." Lucas said, kissing her on the forehead before walking out and shutting the door behind her. She turned on a lamp and changed into Lucas's clothes. She then got into his bed and pulled the blankets over her. Everything smelled like him. She loved it.

_Well, he was right. The bed is comfortable._

_---_

The next morning, Brooke woke up to the smell of coffee. She looked over at the clock. _8:43. _Remembering that she was in Lucas's bed, she got up and walked into the kitchen.

"Good morning." Lucas said as he stood over the counter, putting together two place-settings at the bar that was off of the kitchen. "I hope you like bacon and eggs."

"Luke, you don't have to make breakfast for me. I'll just get changed and go." She said turning around to go back into the bedroom.

"No, you will not. Because I'll never be able to eat all of this by myself. Plus it's nice to have someone to talk to." He said. She turned back around.

"Fine. But, I really feel bad, Luke. I've known you for like, a week, and you've already driven all the way to the airport to pick me up, completely helped me move, and now I'm waking up in your bed and you're fixing me breakfast."

"And is there anything wrong with that?"

"Well...no, I just...I'm sorry. I feel like I've caused you so much trouble."

"Don't ever feel that way. If I didn't want to do all of that I wouldn't have." He said, walking over to her. He was going to kiss her until she pressed a finger against his lips to stop him.

"Wait. I haven't brushed my teeth yet. That's gross." She said. He laughed.

"There's some extra toothbrushes in the bottom drawer in the bathroom." He told her. She quickly ran off to brush her teeth and came back to find him exactly where she left him. She giggled and kissed him hard as she wrapped her arms around his neck. He grabbed her waist and pulled her up onto a barstool behind them. She leaned back and they kiss became more heated, until the smell of smoke came over them. Lucas quickly ran over to the toaster, realizing he had burnt the toast.

"Shit." He said. Brooke laughed. Lucas threw the black pieces of toast in the trash and then grabbed two more slices of bread from the package and placed them in the toaster.

"Oh, I made coffee, you want some?" Lucas asked.

"Sure." She said. He poured some into a cup and handed it to her. She found that the milk and sugar were already on the counter, so she put in a little of each and took a sip.

"Mmm. This is good." She told him.

"Glad you're enjoying it." He responded.

Suddenly there was a knock on the door, and almost immediately after Nathan walked in.

"Funny. I don't remember saying 'Come in!' or opening the door for you." Lucas said to Nathan as Nathan made his way to the kitchen in a grey t-shirt and multi-colored plaid pajama pants.

"Like it's anything out of the ordinary." Nathan replied. He looked at Brooke. "Looks like someone got lucky last night. Good going, bro."

"Why would you assume that?" Lucas asked, knowing well what Nathan was thinking. He got worried thinking that Brooke would get nervous at the topic.

"Dude, Brooke's sitting in your room at nine in the morning in _your_ clothes. I don't think you could have made it any more obvious."

"Well, I think if you had walked in and we were lying naked in Lucas's bed it would be more apparent." Brooke chimed in, adding some light humor. Both boys laughed. Lucas was relieved that she wasn't intimidated by Nathan's words.

"Anyway, what do you want? Can't you see I've got company?" Lucas asked him.

"Oh, I can see that. I was just wondering if you had any whipped cream. Haley...um...Haley wants... waffles with whipped cream and strawberries." Nathan said.

"Sure she does. It's in the fridge, just take it. And do me a favor and don't bring it back." Lucas told him.

"Thanks, Luke. Bye, Brooke." Nathan said as he grabbed the can and made his way out the door.

"Sorry. He can be a real ass sometimes." Lucas apologized to Brooke.

"No big deal." She laughed.

Lucas continued to make breakfast as Brooke got up and got the paper from the table by the front door. She brought it back to her seat and read Lucas off random stories, getting his opinion on things. Sometimes she'd be talking and he'd just stare at her. Stare at her gorgeous olive skin, silky brown hair, and into her honey brown eyes. There was something about this girl that made him always want to be with her. She was funny, passionate and an overall strong person. After they finished breakfast, Brooke decided she'd get going since she'd been there for so long, so she got up.

"Alright, I should probably get going. I've definitely overstayed my welcome." She said before kissing him. He grabbed her tiny waist and pulled her back to him.

"No, don't go. Stay with me. It's Sunday, we can just lounge around." Lucas told her.

"I'd love to, but I've got an apartment that still needs to be unpacked." She said.

"I'll help you." Lucas told her.

"If you really want to, you're more than welcome."

"Definitely. Just let me get in the shower and shave real quick and we'll go over together."

"Okay. I'll clean up the kitchen and change into my other clothes." Brooke said.

"You don't have to. I'll do it later." Lucas told her.

"Believe me, you've done more than enough for me, I think I can do something as simple as the dishes for you." She said. "So go get in the shower."

He complied and went into the bathroom. Brooke cleaned up the kitchen and then put on her old clothes and turned on the T.V. while she waited for Lucas to come out.

"Alright, all set?" Lucas said, grabbing his keys from the hook.

"Yup. Let's go." She agreed, following him out to the car. Before they got in, she stopped them.

"Let me drive. I have the same car, I promise I know what I'm doing." She said, taking the keys from his hand. She got into the driver's seat and turned the key. She pulled out of the parking garage and headed out onto the street.

"Okay, so I do know how to drive the car but I still have no idea where I'm going." She admitted. He laughed.

"Okay. Make a right here, then go down a few blocks and I'll tell you what to do from there." He told her. The two drove the five minutes it took to get from Lucas's apartment to Brooke's and continued unpacking when Brooke's phone rang.

"That's probably Seventeen. Hold on one sec." Brooke said to Lucas. He nodded.

"Hello?" Brooke answered.

"Hello, Brooke. This is Daphne again from Seventeen. I was just calling to see if you could start on Tuesday." Daphne said.

"Yes. That'd be fine. What time should I be there?" Brooke asked.

"9 o'clock. And you'll be working until around 4:30. You'll probably only be working Tuesday through Thursday for now."

"Perfect. Thank you."

"No problem. See you Tuesday." Daphne said. Brooke hung up the phone.

"Well. I start on Tuesday." Brooke told Lucas.

"That's great, Brooke. Are you excited?" He asked.

"Yeah. I think it'll be a really great experience." Brooke said. "Speaking of jobs, what do you do in the summer?"

"I'm a lifeguard at this big ritzy-glitzy hotel that all the rich people stay at. There's hardly anybody ever in the pool, and I only have to work for six hours on Mondays, Tuesdays and Wednesdays. And I don't even start until the end of June. It's super easy." Lucas told her.

"Oh, that's good." She responded.

Finally, at around seven o'clock, the two somehow managed to put the whole apartment together. Brooke was fixing the different colored pillows on her white couch when Lucas came and tackled her on to it.

"Lucas!" She screamed in laughter. He had her underneath him, so he took advantage of their position and kissed her. He then pulled apart from her when his stomach growled. She laughed.

"I guess I'm hungry." Lucas said, shifting over to that he was laying next to her.

"We can order food since I obviously have none here." she told him.

"Yeah. We'll do that. But let's just relax for a second." Lucas said. The two laid there in silence for two minutes, embracing the moment as they stared at the ceiling.

"Brooke?" Lucas said.

"That would be me."

"I hope this doesn't freak you out, but I really like you. I feel like I've known you forever." he admitted to her.

"Good. I really like you, too." She said, turning so she was facing him. She kissed him lightly. His heart soared.

"Alright. I guess we should get something to eat. Do you like chinese?" He asked.

"Love it."

"Perfect. Chinese it is." Lucas said. Brooke stayed on the couch and watched him as he was on the phone. He was like nobody else she was ever with. It had only been a week and she already knew that this wasn't gonna be just a summer fling.


	5. Better Together

**Author's Note: **First, I want to thank everyone for the reviews. They make me happy :) Anyway, this chapter could have been posted way earlier, but my internet was down for a few daysand I got preoccupied with another idea for the Nathan and Haley oneshot I wrote, which if you haven't checked out, please do! So here's the next chapter, it's kind of filler, but has some significance, but I won't give too much away and ramble on. Enjoy! P.S. - Chapter is titled after Jack Johnson's "Better Together."

Chapter 5 - Better Together

It had been almost exactly one year since Brooke bumped into Lucas on her way to her interview. It was the end of May and they both had just graduated from college. Brooke had made her way from a busy intern to a full-time fashion director at Seventeen Magazine. Lucas was in the midst of looking for jobs in local schools. Haley and Brooke had become best friends, but Brooke still kept in touch with Peyton. Brooke met Lucas's parents, Karen and Keith Scott, when she went back to North Carolina for Christmas, and Lucas met Brooke's parents, Ron and Helen Davis, when they happened to be in New York for a business project. Although both still lived in their separate apartments, they had their fair share of sleepovers.

Brooke woke up in Lucas's bed one Saturday morning, and rolled over to find Lucas laying next to her, staring up at the ceiling with his hands together on his chest. He looked over at her.

"Hey, pretty girl." Lucas said.

"Hey, Broody. What're you doing just laying there?" She asked.

"Thinking."

"About what?"

"You."

"Me?"

"Yes. You." He told her.

"What about me?" Brooke asked.

"Well, I was actually thinking about us. Now this might be an idea that you may not like, but I'm gonna throw it out there anyway. What would you think about moving in together? I mean, we've known each other for a year, we practically live together as it is, so why not?" He suggested.

"It's funny you say that. I was thinking about that not too long ago myself. And I think it's a good idea." Brooke said.

"Good. So when do you want to do this?" He questioned.

"I don't know. Well it would make sense to do it soon since this month is almost over and if we wait we're going to have to pay the rent for next month. But wait, who's apartment are we going to live in?" She asked.

"I don't know. You're more than welcome to move in here. But your apartment is bigger."

"Yeah. We should probably move into mine." Brooke agreed.

"Okay."

"Okay."

"That was easy enough." Lucas said.

"It was." She added.

---

Over the next couple of days, Lucas and Brooke packed up all of Lucas's things and gradually moved Lucas in. There were only a few boxes left in Lucas's apartment, and tomorrow he was handing in his key and his last month's rent. Brooke and Lucas decided to spend the night in the empty apartment. Lucas was taping up the last box he had as Brooke walked in with an overnight bag and a change of clothes so she could leave from there to go to work in the morning.

"Well, well. Last night in this apartment." She said, closing the door and locking it.

"Yeah. Kind of sad. I've lived here for almost five years." Lucas said, looking around the empty living room. Brooke walked over to him and hugged him. They held each other for a moment and then Brooke spoke up.

"We had a lot of firsts in here." Brooke said, looking at him with an eyebrow raised.

"Oh, I remember." Lucas said. She laughed.

"We should probably have some lasts, too." She added, grabbing his hand and pulling him into the bedroom. He smiled widely. Yeah, he was going to miss this place.

---

The next morning, they two lovers woke up to the alarm set on Brooke's phone, and Brooke quickly got ready for work while she let Lucas continue sleeping. After a half an hour, he got up to see her before she left, even though he knew if he didn't get up she'd still come and say goodbye to him.

"You're up?" She asked, seeing him behind her in the mirror.

"Yeah. I figure I'll get out of here early." He told her.

"That's good." She said, turning around to face him. She wrapped her arms around him and kissed him with her freshly painted lips. She grinned into his mouth and pulled away. "Well, I've gotta run. I'll be home at 4:30." She laughed. "Home. Sounds like we're married." He laughed in response.

"Okay. I'll be waiting." He said, following her to the door. She stopped right before she got to the door, turning around.

"You know, this sucks. I have to go to work everyday and you get to lounge around all day." She said.

"Only for another month. Then I'll be lifeguarding again, and in September I'll actually have a real job." He reminded her.

"Yeah, I guess. I just wish I could be home more." Brooke said.

"So do I. Welcome to the real world. Have a good day at work, babe." He said, kissing her. "Love you."

"Love you, too. Bye." She said, walking out the door.

Lucas turned around to get in the shower before leaving for good. After getting out, he was in the middle of getting dressed when he heard a knock on the door. He walked out of his empty bedroom to the door, and opened it to find Nathan in a dark grey suit.

"Hey, man." Nathan said.

"Nathan Scott, awake, not to mention in a suit, before nine o'clock in the morning?" Lucas said, shocked.

"Yeah. I've got a job interview, but I wanted to come and say goodbye to the place early in case you decided to leave before I could get back." Nathan explained. When Nathan, Haley and Lucas first came to New York, they all lived in Lucas's apartment for two months before another apartment became available.

"Okay. Do what you gotta do. I need to go finish getting dressed." Lucas said, laughing.

Nathan stood at the window in the living room while Lucas was getting dressed. Lucas came out and stood next to him.

"We had some good parties in here." Nathan said, joking around. Lucas laughed.

"That we did. Alright, let's not get all sentimental over an apartment and let's get out of here. Can you grab that box over there and I'll take these two?" He asked.

"Sure. I'm gonna miss you as a neighbor." Nathan said.

"Thanks. So am I. But I'm only five minutes away. It's not like this is the end." Lucas told him, trying to lighten the mood, which was turning out to be more depressing than he thought it would

With that, the brothers left the apartment, giving it one last look before leaving for the last time. Lucas and Nathan brought the boxes down to Lucas's car. Lucas wished Nathan luck at his

interview before returning into the building to hand in his key and rent to Mrs. McKinley, the

owner of the building. When her husband died, he left the building to her. She was a very sweet old lady who was in her late 80s and would do anything for you. Lucas knocked on her door and she opened it in her robe and slippers.

"Oh. Hello, Lucas." Mrs. McKinley said.

"Good morning, Mrs. McKinley. I just wanted to give you the rent and my key. I'm going to be leaving now." Lucas told her, handing her what he had in his hands.

"Thank you, dear. It was so nice having you here. Good luck with Brooke, she's a fabulous young lady." She told him.

"I know." He said.

"You think you're going to marry her?" She asked curiously.

"I think so." He told her.

"Good. Well, keep in touch, Lucas. And good luck with your new apartment." She said, pulling him in for a hug.

"Thank you. I'll see you around." He told her before walking away as she closed the door. Lucas went back out to his car and left for Brooke's apartment to bring what was left of his things, then ran some errands while she was still at work.

---

Brooke came home from work around five o'clock to find Lucas sitting on the couch reading a book. He got up when he heard her come in and met her by the kitchen.

"So, is it official?" Brooke asked.

"Yes, it is." He told her. She squealed.

"Yay. I'm so excited." She said, hugging him. She looked up at him and he pressed his lips against hers for what turned out to be a passionate kiss.

"Mmm...I'm gonna go get changed, but how about we order Chinese to celebrate?" She asked.

"Sounds like a plan. I'll order. Same thing we always get?" He asked.

"Of course." She said, walking to the bedroom they now shared.

The Chinese food was eaten as fast as it came, and Brooke and Lucas unpacked what was left in Lucas's boxes. At nine o'clock, everything was finished and they were sitting at the kitchen table eating ice cream in pajamas. Which, for Brooke, consisted of one of Lucas's sweatshirts and a pair of short shorts.

"Okay. So you went to the post office and changed your address and made sure all of your mail is going to be delivered here?" Brooke asked.

"Yes, yes, yes. Don't worry, babe. I've got everything under control." Lucas assured her.

"Okay. I trust you." She said.

"Oh, I almost forgot to tell you. I'm going for an interview tomorrow at Kensington Hills High School in Jersey. They called me today and said they were impressed by my resume and wanted to see me as soon as possible. So I told them I was available tomorrow so we set up an appointment for ten o'clock tomorrow morning." He explained.

"Luke! That's great!" She exclaimed.

"Yeah. I hope everything goes well."

"It will. Don't worry." Brooke told him. "Haley called me today at work. She wants us to go over there for dinner tomorrow night. I don't know why but I figured it'd be fun so I said that we'd be there at seven." She told him.

"Yeah. That's cool." He agreed.

"Good." Brooke said, yawning. "Wow. I think all of this excitement as made me tired. I'm gonna head in early, care to join me?"

"Gladly." Lucas said. They got up from the table and put their empty bowls in the sink and headed to bed, hand-in-hand.

---

Lucas was heading just getting out of the Lincoln Tunnel to go to his interview the next day when his phone rang. BROOKE flashed across the screen. He smiled, like he always did when he saw or heard her name.

"Hey, sweetheart." He said, answering the phone.

"Hey, Luke. I just wanted to call you before the interview for good luck because the last time either of us had an interview was when I first met you, so since it'd be kinda hard to bump into you again, I figured I'd just call." Brooke told him.

"Thanks, Brooke. I love you." He stated.

"I love you, too. Call me after the interview." She told him. He hung up the phone, smiling as he remembered how they had met. After another 10 minutes, he had made it to Kensington Hills. He pulled into the board of education building, which was right next to the high school. He looked at the school, which appeared to be very well kept and looked like it had a few new additions. He walked into the building and found the superintendent's office, where the secretary brought him to Mr. John Fitzgerald, the superintendent. Lucas and Mr. Fitzgerald talked for awhile and after twenty minutes, Mr. Fitzgerald had made a decision.

"Well, I normally don't do this, but since we narrowed the job down to three people and I have already seen the other two, I like you the best, so I'm going to give you this job if you would like it." Mr. Fitzgerald explained. Lucas smiled.

"Absolutely, sir. Thank you so much." Lucas stated.

"Great. We'll be in touch. There will be some faculty meetings in late August and school starts September 5th, but don't worry, you'll get more information soon." The man told him, shaking Lucas's hand.

"Great. Thanks again." Lucas said, walking out. He got into the car and picked up the phone to call Brooke. It rang three times before the secretary picked up.

"Seventeen Magazine Offices. How can I help you?" The woman said.

"Hi, this is Lucas Scott, may I please speak with Brooke Davis?" Lucas asked.

"Brooke is in a meeting until 11:15, would you like me to give her a message?"

Lucas looked at the clock before responding. He had about another twenty minutes before she was finished with the meeting. "You know what, I'm going to stop by and surprise her, so can you do me a favor and just pretend like I didn't call?" He asked.

"Sure." She said.

"Thank you." Lucas stated before hanging up.

He made his way to Brooke's office, stopping by to grab some flowers before arriving because he knew she always loved flowers. The secretary spoke up as he made his way to the front desk.

"Let me guess. Lucas Scott." She said, half-recognizing him from the pictures in Brooke's office.

"You got it. Is Brooke done with her meeting?" He asked.

"She is. Her office is the second door on the right." The woman told him, pointing towards the direction of the hallway.

"Thanks."

He stopped at the door, wondering if he should just walk in or knock first. He figured he'd knock.

"Come in!" He heard her yell. He smiled as he opened the door. Her back was to him and she was bent over looking through things on a shelf.

"Hey." He said. She paused for a minute before turning around. She knew that voice well.

"Luke? What are you doing here?" She asked, walking over to him.

"I came to see you. And to give you flowers." He told her before giving her a tender kiss.

"I can see that, thank you. How was your interview?" She asked.

"Fantastic. He gave me the job right on the spot." Lucas told her. Her eyes widened.

"No way!" She exclaimed, putting one hand on her chest.

"Yes way." He mimicked.

"Omigod! This is great! I'm so happy for you!" She said, running over to him to give him a big hug and congratulatory kiss.

"I know. I'm happy, too." Lucas said in response.

"Me too. How about we go and get lunch?" She asked.

"Sounds great." He agreed. Brooke grabbed her stuff and told the secretary she'd be back in an hour as she walked out of the offices hand-in-hand with Lucas.

* * *

**2nd Author's Note:** I know it may have been a little unexpected that I fast forwarded to a year ahead, but trust me, if I didn't the story would have been way too slow moving. Anyway, review! Please:) 


	6. Out of the Blue

**Author's Note:** Thank you so much for all the reviews! Chapter is titled after Aly and AJ's "Out of the Blue." Enjoy and review!

Chapter 6 - Out of the Blue

It was now 6:45 and Brooke and Lucas were getting ready to go to Nathan and Haley's for dinner. Lucas was sitting watching TV while Brooke finished getting ready in the bathroom. He was always done before her.

Brushing her straightened brown hair, Brooke walked out to where Lucas was.

"So you're going to tell Nathan and Haley about the job tonight, right?" Brooke questioned. Lucas turned off the TV and got up, hoping she was ready to go.

"Yeah. Definitely." He answered. She smiled and went back into the bathroom to put back her brush and came out with her purse, ready to go.

"Alright. We might as well get going." She said.

"Sounds like a plan." Lucas said, grabbing the bottle of wine they were bringing over and following her out the door and locking it behind him.

Over at Nathan and Haley's, Haley was setting the plates at the table right before Brooke and Lucas arrived.

"So we're going to tell Brooke and Lucas tonight, right?" Nathan asked Haley.

"Yes. It's been three months so I think we've waited long enough." Haley responded.

"Good. I'm excited." Nathan said, kissing her. They were interrupted by a knock on the door.

"What about your job?" Haley asked quickly.

"Yeah, that too." He replied.

"Come in!" They yelled in unison, knowing who it was.

"Hey, guys." Brooke said.

"Just in time." Haley told them. "Sit down, dinner's ready."

They sat down and Haley placed the bowls full of all sorts of foods on the table, and everyone enjoyed the meal. After dinner they were casually talking when Lucas tapped his glass with his fork as if he was going to make a toast or something.

"Well. I have an announcement to make. I got a job in Kensington Hills High School today. I'll be teaching sophomore English classes in September." Lucas announced.

"That's great, Luke!" exclaimed Haley.

"Well, in that case, I think it's time that Haley and I make our announcements." Nathan stated. "First, I, too, got a job today, but instead of it being at a high school it is at R&R Law Firm in New Jersey."

"That's awesome, Nate! What a coincidence!" Brooke said.

"And on a more important note." Haley said. "Go ahead, Nate, tell them."

"No, you tell them." Nathan said smiling while he took her hand and gave it a reassuring squeeze.

"Okay." Haley said, giggling. "We're having a baby!"

"Omigod!" Brooke squealed in excitement. "Congratulations!"

"Well, well. Couldn't even wait until you were financially secure." said a voice from the direction of the door. Brooke, Lucas, Nathan and Haley all turned their heads to find Dan Scott standing in the doorway. Dan Scott was both Nathan and Lucas's father. Dan had abandoned Lucas and Lucas's mother to marry Nathan's mother, Deb. Dan and Deb got divorced when Nathan was in high school and Nathan hadn't seen him since. He was the owner of the multi-million dollar company, Dan Scott Motors, which had gone from one dealership to hundreds across the country. He put evil into everything he did, and both Nathan and Lucas held a strong hatred towards the man. Outraged, Nathan walked over to him briskly.

"What the fuck do you think you're doing here, Dan?" Nathan asked furiously.

"I just came to see my son. Well, I should say sons." Dan told him, looking towards Lucas, who was now standing at Nathan's side.

"How did you find me? And you couldn't even knock? What is wrong with you?" Nathan asked.

"I shouldn't have to knock, son." Dan said. "Plus, if I had knocked, I probably would not have found out that I was going to have a grandchild."

"You don't even have the right to know whether or not you're going to have a grandchild." Lucas said.

"Get out. Now." Nathan told Dan angrily.

"There's no need for me to leave. It looks like you're having a fine dinner, here. It'd be nice of you to invite your father in for awhile." Dan said, walking passed Lucas and Nathan to where Brooke and Haley were at the table. Lucas and Nathan followed him, hot on his trail.

"Haley. Nice to see you. Congratulations." He told her. She didn't say anything, but in return gave him a dirty look.

"And who might this pretty lady be?" Dan asked, motioning towards Brooke. Brooke worriedly looked at Lucas, unsure of whether or not she should answer him. Seeing her expression, Lucas spoke up.

"This is Brooke." Lucas answered.

"Now, Lucas, I think the girl can answer for herself." Dan stated. Lucas looked at him sternly.

"I'm Brooke. Nice to meet you." Brooke said, half-smiling.

"And you are? Lucas's wife? Girlfriend? One night stand?" Dan asked rudely. Brooke's mouth opened at his words.

"That's it. Get the fuck out of my house right now or I'm calling the cops." Nathan said, two seconds away from punching him across the face.

"Fine. I'll leave. But don't think this is the last that you'll see of me." Dan said. With that he turned around and walked out the door, not bothering to shut it behind him. Noticing the open door, Nathan walked over to it and checked to make sure Dan was still walking down the hallway, and shut the door and locked it quickly.

"Brooke, I am so sorry." Lucas said to her as he embraced her in a hug. "He's such an ass."

"It's okay, Luke. It's not your fault." She told him, looking up at him and giving him a peck on the lips.

"Typical." Nathan said.

"What?" asked Haley.

"Typical that he'd come in and ruin the good night that we were having." Nathan told said. "I really hope he doesn't stick around here. Now that he knows where I live I have a feeling he'll be haunting me. You're lucky you moved, Luke."

"Yeah. I guess so." Lucas said. "But let's not worry about it and get back to what we were talking about before. Congratulations to you both, I'm very happy for you." Lucas said, shaking hands with Nathan and giving Haley a big hug.

"Thank you." Haley said kindly.

"How far along are you?" Brooke asked.

"About 13 weeks." Haley told her.

"Aw. So you're due in ...November?" She asked, trying to calculate in her head.

"Yup." Haley answered.

"Are you going to find out if it's a girl or a boy?" Brooke questioned.

"Yeah. We decided it'd be easier to find out." She told her. "Come with me, Brooke. I'll show you the ideas I have for the nursery."

Brooke took Haley's hand as they giggled and ran off to what would eventually be the baby's room. Nathan and Lucas were both relieved that Dan's visit didn't seem to have a huge effect on the two of them. Lucas laughed.

"What's so funny?" Nathan asked.

"The thought of you having a kid." Lucas told him.

"Yeah. I'm not gonna lie, I'm kinda scared." Nathan admitted.

"Nah, you'll be fine." Lucas told him, patting him on the back. Lucas walked into the kitchen and popped open the bottle of wine that him and Brooke had brought. He poured a glass for himself and one for Nathan.

"Well, we might as well drink it now since you and Haley won't be doing any drinking for awhile." Lucas said, joking around. Nathan laughed.

"I guess so. Now I'm gonna have to be a supportive husband and not drink when she's around. Oh, just wonderful." Nathan said sarcastically before taking a sip of his wine. Lucas chuckled.

"It'll be worth it in the end." Lucas told him.

"Yeah. I hope so. It's just a little terrifying. Especially because we didn't exactly plan this or anything." Nathan stated.

"No?" Lucas asked.

"Well, don't get me wrong, we were going to have kids eventually, but we just got out of college! We're only 21 years old. But, hey, she was excited, and I'm excited. Scared, but excited. So I guess everything happens for a reason." Nathan said.

"Exactly." Lucas agreed.

---

Almost three weeks later, nobody had heard a word from Dan, so they safely assumed that he was just going to leave them alone. They went on with their normal lives and Nathan started his job. Lucas quit his job as a lifeguard and was working at a summer school right down the street from his apartment.

It was now Friday, and Brooke got a phone call from Haley at work.

"Brooke Davis." Brooke said, picking up the phone.

"Hey, Brooke. It's Haley." Haley said.

"Hales! How are you?" She asked.

"Great. I have some news." Haley told her.

"Good or bad?" Brooke asked.

"Good. We found out the sex of the baby." She told her. Brooke squealed.

"Omigod! What is it?" She asked.

"A girl!" Haley screamed into the phone.

"Ahh! Yay! I'm so excited! We have to go shopping for little girl clothes! How about today? I get out at 1:30 on Fridays, so why don't I pick you up at about, 2:30?" Brooke suggested.

"Sounds like a plan! I'll see you then!" Haley said. Brooke hung up the phone and then quickly picked it up again to dial Lucas's number to see if he had found out.

"Luke!" Brooke yelled when he picked up.

"Brooke, what's up?" He asked.

"Did you get the news?" She asked excitedly.

"About Nathan and Haley?" He asked.

"Yes!" She exclaimed.

"Yes, I did. Nathan just called me about ten minutes ago. A baby girl. She's going to be wrapped around Nathan's finger." Lucas said. Brooke laughed.

"I'm so happy for them." She said.

"So am I." He agreed, thinking about what it would be like if him and Brooke eventually had kids. He hoped that he'd have boys that would love sports, and a little girl that looked exactly like Brooke, with brown curls and big brown eyes. Almost as if she knew what he was thinking, Brooke paused before speaking again.

"Alright. Well, after work I'll be home to change and then I'm picking up Haley so we can go shopping for baby stuff. I'm so excited!" Brooke said.

"Okay. I'll see you then. Love you." He told her.

"Love you, too." She told him and hung up the phone.

---

It was 2:25 and Brooke knocked on the door of Nathan and Haley's apartment. Haley was home alone all day since Nathan had gotten a job and Nathan and Haley decided that it would be best for Haley to wait awhile before getting a job since she was pregnant.

Haley opened the door to find her friend on the other side.

"Wow. Brooke Davis is actually early for once." Haley stated.

"Yeah. I got out a little earlier than I thought I would." Brooke explained.

"Alright, ready to go?" Haley asked.

"That I am." Brooke responded, and the two girls headed out on their shopping spree.

An hour later, they were standing in Tiny Fashions, a little boutique that sold gorgeous baby clothes. Brooke and Haley had a basket full of stuff. They rang up and decided to head to a maternity store to buy clothes for Haley, who was now showing a little bit.

"So have you thought of any names?" Brooke asked.

"No one's gonna find out names until she's born." Haley told her.

"Aw! I hate when people play that game!" Brooke exclaimed.

"Yeah, yeah. I bet you'll do the same thing." Haley said laughing.

"Nah." Brooke disagreed. She chuckled.

"I know this might sound cheesy, and some of it I can blame on these crazy hormones, but I'm really glad Luke met you. I never really made any good girlfriends here, and I guess I got lucky that Lucas fell in love with you and I got a new best friend." Haley said.

"Thanks, Hales. I'm really glad I met you, too. It would have been hard to just go out and find friends. It's almost like I came into New York and I already had this great little family without even knowing it." Brooke told her.

"Aw. We're so cheesy." Haley said.

"Yeah. Enough of it. There's Cecilia's. They have the most fashionable maternity clothes, let's go in there." Brooke said.

"Fine by me. I'll leave it up to you, since your Miss Fashion and all." Haley said.

"Shut up." Brooke said as the two laughed and headed for more shopping.


	7. Better Open the Door

**Author's Note:** Thanks for the reviews! If you haven't already noticed, Nathan and Haley are becoming and will continue to be a big part of this story. I hope everyone's okay with that! So I just wanted to clear up somebody's question and tell you that when I pick chapter titles, I just scroll through my iTunes and find a title of a song that would also be a good title for the chapter. So majority of the time, the content of the song that the chapter is named after will have nothing to do with what's going on in the story, but the actual title of the song will have to do with the chapter. So, for instance, the last chapter was called 'Out of the Blue' because Dan kind of popped up 'out of the blue' if you get what I'm saying. I hope that makes sense! Haha. Anyway, this chapter is named after the song Better Open the Door by Motion City Soundtrack. Enjoy!

Chapter 7 - Better Open the Door

Brooke and Haley had shopped the rest of the day away and grabbed dinner, and went back to Nathan and Haley's apartment around 7 to find Nathan and Lucas playing and intense game of NBA Live on Xbox. They hung out for awhile before Brooke and Lucas left, discussing baby names and such. Since Haley was tired, both she and Nathan went to bed around ten o'clock.

Nathan awoke to the sound of loud knocks on his door in the middle of the night. He looked over at the clock. _3:34._ He sat up in his bed and Haley woke up as well.

"Who the hell could that be?" Nathan asked.

"I don't know." She said as Nathan got up and left the bedroom to go see who was at the door. She got up and stayed by the bedroom door in case it was someone dangerous, and she listened to what was going on. Nathan opened the door to find two police officers standing at the door. He half closed his eyes as they adjusted to the bright light coming from the hallway.

"Um...Hi...Can I help you?" Nathan asked.

"Yes, actually. We're sorry to bother you, but this is rather important. Do you know a Dan Scott?" asked one of the policeman.

"Yeah. He's my father." Nathan replied. Hearing the name, Haley walked out of the bedroom and stood a little behind Nathan so she could better understand the situation.

"Oh. Well we're sorry to have to break it to you, but we found Dan dead in a hotel this evening. The maid found him there, and since we couldn't find any family on record, we looked through his wallet and found this address." The officer said, handing Nathan a piece of paper.

It read: _653 West 73rd Street. Apt. 718._ Nathan thought to himself for a second.

_This is like, a dream... No, wait, you're actually awake, Nathan. Hmm... this must be the address that Dan had found when he was looking for me._

"Wow. This is...wow. Um. Was he dead like, murdered?" Nathan asked.

"No, there was no signs of any attempt of murder. At this point we think it was a heart attack. Speaking of which, we're going to need to ask you some questions about his health and what's going to happen with him." The officer said.

"Oh. Of course, come in." Nathan said, motioning for them to come in. Haley showed them to the table. Haley grabbed his hand.

"I'm sorry, baby." She whispered to him.

"It's okay. It's not like I had any good feelings towards the guy. But do me a favor and call Lucas. Tell him what happened and tell him and Brooke to both come over, in case we have to leave, because then Brooke can stay here with you." Nathan told her before kissing her on the forehead. He went over to the table that the officers were at and answered a bunch of questions. Haley went into the bedroom to call Lucas.

"Hello?" Lucas said groggily as he answered the phone.

"Luke? It's Haley." She said.

"Hales? What's wrong?" He said.

"Dan was found dead in a hotel earlier tonight and the police just came to our door to tell us. Nathan's answering questions and such and told me to call you and to tell you and Brooke to come over." She told him.

"Oh. Wow. Okay. We'll be there soon." Lucas said, hanging up the phone. Haley hung up and went into the kitchen to sit with Nathan.

Lucas got up out of bed to grab some clothes and brush his teeth but Brooke stopped him.

"Luke, what's wrong?" Brooke asked worriedly, sitting up in bed.

"Get up. You have to come with me to Nathan and Haley's. They found Dan dead at a hotel. The police are at Nathan's now." He told her. She jumped out of bed and they made their way to Nathan and Haley's as fast as they could.

A half an hour after Lucas and Brooke arrived, Nathan and Lucas left to go down to the police station and to do an official identification of the body. They left Brooke and Haley behind to call Deb, Karen and Keith and tell them the news. At six o'clock the girls decided to go back to sleep for awhile, and Nathan and Lucas came home around eight.

Nathan opened the door to find the two girls asleep on the couches. Haley, who had always been a light sleeper, awoke to the sound of the door and got up to see what was going on. She left Brooke asleep.

"So how was it?" She asked.

"Just great." Lucas said sarcastically as he walked over on the couch to sit next to where Brooke was sleeping. Nathan sat on the other couch with Haley. Brooke woke up to the movement of the couch.

"Hey, Broody. You okay?" She asked, sitting up. She crawled over to him and sat on his lap.

"Better now that I'm with you." He replied, giving her a soft kiss and smiling at her. He wrapped his arms around her waist and she leaned back against him, placing the back of her head on his shoulder.

"So what are we going to do about a funeral?" Nathan asked.

"I don't know. I think we're gonna have to go down to Tree Hill though. Since he doesn't have any other family we're going to have to take care of it, Nate." Lucas told him.

"Yeah. That's what I thought." Nathan said.

"So when are we going to be leaving?" asked Haley.

"Probably within the next two days. But wait, you can't fly, you're pregnant, Hales." He told her.

"No, it's okay, Nathan. It's not until later in the pregnancy that it's dangerous." She told him.

"I don't care. You're still not going. I'm not jeopardizing my daughter's life so you can go to my asshole of a father's funeral. You can just stay here." Nathan said.

"So I'm gonna stay here by myself?" She asked.

"No, Brooke will stay with you." Lucas said with his eyes closed.

"You don't want me to go?" Brooke asked. Lucas opened up his eyes.

"It's not that I don't want you there, it's just that you have no obligation to be there. Nobody does really, but you wouldn't wanna go anyway. You can just hang out with Hales for a few days." Lucas told her.

"Okay. I guess that's fine." Brooke said. Haley got up and walked over towards the computer.

"Where are you going?" Nathan asked her.

"To get you plane tickets. You and Lucas are going to need to be on the next plane to North Carolina." She said.

---

That night, Brooke and Haley were saying goodbye to Lucas and Nathan at the airport. Dan's body was going to be sent down there and a wake and funeral were planned over the next few days.

"Bye, sweetheart. I love you." Lucas told Brooke as he hugged her.

"I love you, too. Call me everyday." Brooke said. Since they had been together, they were rarely apart for more than two days, so they were both a little upset over the separation.

"Of course." Lucas replied, giving her one last long kiss.

Nathan hugged Haley as they said goodbye. Apparently, the pregnancy hormones were getting to her, because she was crying as she was saying goodbye.

"Hales, it's only for four days. I'll be back before you know it." Nathan said.

"I know. It's these damn hormones. Go ahead, I'll be fine. I love you." Haley said.

"I love you, too." He replied, giving her one final kiss before walking to the plane with Lucas. They boarded and found their seats and decided that they'd just sleep when they got to Tree Hill since neither of them ever slept well in a plane.

"So. This is some day." Lucas said.

"You're telling me." Nathan replied.

"I wanna tell you something. Because I figure this is the only peace we'll have over the next few days." Lucas said.

"Shoot."

"I was thinking about asking Brooke to marry me."

"It's about time." Nathan said.

"You think so?" Lucas asked.

"Definitely. I mean, I've never seen you like this before with a girl. She's everything to you, and you're obviously everything to her. You guys bring out the best in each other. Anybody would tell you that you're obviously meant to be." Nathan told him.

"Yeah. Okay, good. I'm going to do that some time when we get back." Lucas stated.

"Good for you, bro. I wish you luck." Nathan said.

—

Around midnight, the two were heading to their parent's houses. Nathan dropped Lucas off at Karen and Keith's and drove himself to Deb's.

Karen and Keith were waiting at the kitchen table when Lucas came in.

"Lucas! My boy! How are you?" She said, giving him a tight hug.

"Good, mom. It's good to see you." Lucas replied.

"Great to see you, Luke." Keith said as they grabbed hands and pulled in for a masculine hug.

"Yeah. I've missed you." Lucas told him.

"Sit down." Karen said. The three sat around the table.

"So how's life?" Keith asked.

"Not bad. As you know, I just got that job. Brooke's job is great. She's doing fine. Haley's handling being pregnant quite well. Nathan's got a job now, too. I don't know. We're all good except for Dan now." Lucas told them.

"Yeah. But this is kind of just a get-it-over-with type of thing. It's not like anyone's going to be crying for days over this." Karen explained. Lucas nodded.

"So when are you going to ask Brooke to marry you?" Keith asked. Lucas looked at him in surprise.

"How did you know?" He asked.

"I can read you like a book. You're completely in love with this girl. She's perfect, Luke." Keith said.

"I know. I think I'm gonna do when I get home." Lucas told them.

"I'm so happy for you, Luke." Karen said, getting filled up.

"Thanks, mom." Lucas said.

"It's late, we should probably go to bed." Karen said. All three got up in unison as Lucas went into his old bedroom, which had never changed. It was the same every time he went back.

Over at Deb's house, Nathan unloaded his suitcase from the rental car and made his way to the front door. Deb told him she'd leave the door unlocked in case it was really late, and he was surprised to find her sitting in the living room when he walked in.

"Hi, mom." He said.

"Hi, Nate." She said back. They exchanged a hug and Nathan sat down in the chair across from hers.

"I'm sorry you had to deal with everything back in New York." She told him.

"It's okay. I wasn't alone." He told her.

"I know. It's so good you have Haley. How's she doing, anyway?" Deb asked.

"She's doing really good. I figured it'd be the safest route to just leave her up their with Brooke. Anything to keep the baby safe." He explained.

"That's good, Nate. I'm so happy for the both of you. I can't believe you're actually going to have a baby. It's crazy. You were a baby just yesterday." Deb laughed.

"I know. But this is just the way life works." Nathan told her.

"How do you feel about having a girl?" She asked.

"I'm excited. Personally, I didn't care, just as long as it's healthy. But I could tell that Haley wanted a girl, so I was kind of pushing for a girl for Haley's sake." He told her.

"You're going to be a great father. And you daughter's definitely going to be wrapped around your finger." She told him. He laughed.

"That's what everyone keeps telling me." Nathan said.

"Okay. I guess we should get to bed. Your bedroom's still up there, including the sheets with the little basketballs all over them." Deb told him. He smiled.

"Thanks, mom. I'll see you in the morning." Nathan told her.

---

Over the course of the next few days, a wake and funeral were held for Dan. Not many people came to either one, and not a tear was shed. But it wasn't like he deserved to have people crying a river over him, anyway. Now, Nathan and Lucas just had to go to the lawyer's office to discuss Dan's will before they could leave.

**A/N: **I apologize if the beginning with the police and everything seemed unrealistic, but it was kind of just an idea that popped into my head so I figured I'd use it whether or not it would actually happen in real life. Anyway, thanks for reading! Now review! Pleaseee! )


	8. Love Makes the World Go Round

Chapter 8 - Love Makes the World Go Round

Nathan and Lucas woke up early that Wednesday to go to the lawyer's office before they returned home. They packed up all their things so they could head straight to the airport from the office, even if they would be a little early.

"Hi, we're here to see Jeff Kensington to discuss a will." Nathan told the secretary at the office.

"Can I have your names, please?" The woman asked.

"Nathan and Lucas Scott." Lucas said.

"Okay. Jeff's waiting for you. I'll bring you in." She said. They followed her to the office and sat down in the two leather chairs across from the lawyer's desk.

"Hi, I'm Jeff Kensington." Jeff said.

"Lucas Scott, and this is my brother Nathan." Lucas said, shaking the man's hand.

"Nice to meet you." Nathan said.

"Okay, boys. Now we're here to discuss the will of Dan Scott, correct?" Jeff said, raising his eyebrows. They nodded. "Good. Okay. Well, I'm sure you're already aware of what Dan has left for you."

"Funny story, actually. The man's our father but we really don't talk to him. So we assumed he wouldn't be leaving us much." Nathan said.

"Well, then you are going to be quite surprised by this. Dan has left Dan Scott Motors and all of the money to the both of you, half and half." Jeff said. Lucas's mouth dropped wide open.

"You're kidding, right?" Nathan asked.

"No, I'm completely serious. Look here." Jeff said, showing them the paper. They stared at it for a minute, neither knowing what to do or say. After some silence, Lucas spoke up.

"This is really strange." Lucas said.

"I can't even believe it." Nathan said. "So does this mean we can take over the company and all of it's money?"

"That would be correct. Once you sign this paper, it's all yours." Jeff said.

"Well, I guess we really don't have a choice. But do you mind if we discuss this really quick?" Lucas asked.

"Sure, I'll leave you alone for a second." Jeff said, getting up and leaving.

"So what the hell are we gonna do?" Nathan said.

"Well, we're obviously going to take it. It's a freakin' fifty million-dollar company, Nate! We can't just let it go!" Lucas exclaimed.

"This is nuts. I mean, this is kind of great, since we just inherited fifty million-dollars and all, but we're going to have to move back to North Carolina if we take this. How do you think Haley and Brooke are going to react to this?"

"Besides Brooke having a job here and everything, she honestly wouldn't mind. She's from down there, anyway. I'm sure she could find something else. Or not even have to work at all. But if she doesn't want to come with me, I'll stay here with her, and you can take it." Lucas explained.

"But you and Brooke aren't married or even engaged yet. She's going to think you're just going to leave her here." Nathan told him.

"No, because I'm going to ask her to marry me as soon as I get home. Don't worry about that. What about Haley though?"

"I don't think Haley would care all that much. Plus, it's not like we were planning on living in New York forever. We do want to raise our kids in a nice town, not a big city." Nathan said. "We've gotta do this."

"Exactly. So we're 50/50 on this. You're in?" Lucas asked, making sure.

"Absolutely." Nathan said. They shook hands on the deal. Jeff returned into the room.

"So have you made a decision?" Jeff asked.

"Yes. We're going to take Dan Scott Motors, and whatever else Dan left for us." Nathan said.

After an hour of signing papers and going over documents, Nathan and Lucas were at the airport and on their way home. They landed back in New York safely and grabbed a taxi so they could get home. It was around three o'clock and they had been in such a rush all day that neither of them told Haley or Brooke.

"Okay. Before we tell either of them, I've got to let Brooke know that I want her to come with me, so I've gotta ask her to marry me." Lucas told Nathan.

"Do you have a ring?" Nathan asked.

"I do, actually. I bought it the other day at that jewelry shop by my mom's café." Lucas said. "I want to do it romantically, though. I'm going to take her out to dinner and ask her to marry me in Times Square. Then I'll bring her back to your apartment so we can tell both of them the news together."

"Sounds like a plan." Nathan said.

Nathan and Lucas returned to Nathan's apartment, where Brooke was staying, and Lucas told her that he was going to bring her out for dinner. They ate at a fancy restaurant in Times Square, and when they walked out, Times Square was shining brightly. He figured Brooke had absolutely no idea what he was about to do.

"Walk with me, over here." Lucas said, bringing her into the sidewalk in the middle of the two sides of the street. He turned her so that she was facing him and took her hands in his.

"Brooke, I love you more than anything in the whole world. You bumping into me was the best thing that ever happened to me. I don't think I could ever live without you, and I don't know how I did before I met you. Every time I see you I see our future together. I can see us having kids that look exactly like you, and I can see us being eighty-years-old and still madly in love. I knew from our first date that you were it for me; that it was you that I was going to spend the rest of my life with." Lucas said. She smiled at him with tears in her eyes, beginning to get an idea of where he was going with this. He then got down on one knee. She cupped her hand over her mouth, now completely aware of what he was about to do. Then he pulled out a red, velvet box and opened it up, revealing a gorgeous diamond ring.

"Brooke Penelope Davis, will you marry me?" He asked. Tears were rolling down her cheeks.

"Yes. Yes I will." She said. He took the gorgeous round diamond ring and slipped it on her finger. It fit perfectly. He rose from his position and kissed her as hard as he could. People around them clapped.

"I love you." She said, still crying.

"I love you, too." He said. "So much."

Both still on a high from what had just happened, they walked into Nathan and Haley's an hour later, all smiles. Nathan and Haley stood there with a bottle of champagne and four glasses, ready to celebrate since Lucas had told Nathan of his plan.

"Congratulations!" Haley squealed, hugging Brooke tightly.

"Thanks, Hales." Brooke said.

"Let me see the ring!" Haley exclaimed. Brooke put her hand in Haley's and Haley examined the white gold band and huge round diamond.

"It's gorgeous." Haley said.

"I know. I love it." Brooke said, squeezing Lucas's hand with her free one.

"Congratulations to the both of you. Here's to the future Mr. And Mrs. Scott." Nathan said, handing Brooke and Lucas glasses of champagne, and making a toast. They all clinked the glasses together and took a sip. Laughter and happiness filled the room. Fifteen minutes later, they were sitting on the couch when Lucas decided it was time to tell them the news.

"Okay. So we've got some big news." Lucas announced. "Now, I just want to tell you that Nathan and I discussed this and decided it would be good for all of us, and we just want you to hear us out before you have a heart attack over it."

Haley and Brooke looked at each other, getting a little weary about what the boys were about to tell them.

"Nate, you can do the honors." Lucas said.

"Okay. Well, you know how we went to discuss Dan's will?" Nathan asked. Both girls nodded.

"Well, it turns out that Dan left Dan Motor Company and all of it's money to Lucas and I. 50/50." Nathan explained. Haley's eyes widened and Brooke's jaw dropped.

"So after discussing this, Lucas and I decided to take control of the business." Nathan said.

"Omigod!" Haley said.

"Now, financially, this is going to be very good for all of us, since we know that this is a fifty-million-dollar company. The only thing that you may have a problem with is that we're going to have to move to North Carolina." Lucas explained. After an awkward silence, he took Brooke's hand in his. He could tell she was a little confused, so he took her out to the balcony so they could talk privately.

"Listen, Brooke. I know this is absolutely huge. And I hope you know that I asked you to marry me before I told you this so you knew that I wasn't going to leave you stranded here, but I also hope you know that I didn't just ask you to marry me for this reason. I've been waiting to ask you for a long, long time now, but I just had to wait until we were both ready. Now, I know this would mean you would have to quit your job, but just think about it, you wouldn't even have to work when we moved back to North Carolina. We'd be closer to my family and Peyton. We would be financially secure for the rest of our lives. But if you don't want to do this, all I have to do is sign a piece of paper and leave it all to Nathan, because you are way more important to me than this company and all of it's money." Lucas explained.

"I know, Lucas. And I trust you. I'd love to move back home, and my job isn't everything. As long as I'm with you, I don't care. Overall, this would be a good move for us." Brooke explained. Lucas sighed in relief and hugged her.

"Are you sure?" He asked.

"Positive. I promise." She told him, giving him a genuine smile.

"Okay. Good. I love you, Brooke." He said.

"I love you, too." She said and kissed him. They made their way back into the apartment and found Nathan and Haley.

"Okay. So we're all in this together?" Brooke asked.

"That we are." Nathan said.

"So when are we going to have to move?" Haley asked.

"Well, they said the vice president of the company, whoever that is, is taking over for now, but can only do it for another two weeks. So we're going to have to leave before that." Nathan explained.

"Wow. I guess that means I'm gonna need to give my two weeks notice tomorrow and tell them I'm leaving at work." Brooke said.

"And I'm going to have to resign from my job at Kensington Hills." Lucas added.

"Yeah. I'm going to do the same with mine." Nathan said.

"And I don't have to do anything!" Haley chimed in. They laughed.

"You're lucky." Brooke said.

"Hey, look who's talking. In two weeks we'll both be sitting home all day." Haley said.

"Yeah. This is good." Lucas added.

---

After two weeks of strenuous packing, giving notices of leaving and saying goodbyes, it was finally time for Brooke, Lucas, Nathan and Haley to leave New York for good. They decided they'd pack everything into a trailer and attach it to Nathan's car and drive down there, especially since Haley was pregnant. Their other cars were being delivered by ferry, and they left the big furniture there since they figured they'd want to buy new stuff for their new houses anyway, which were both in a new construction development in Tree Hill, only a block away from each other.

After some tears were shed while saying goodbye to the apartments and the beloved city that brought Brooke and Lucas together, especially from a very hormonal Haley, the four were on the highway towards North Carolina. Lucas and Nathan were in the front seats, discussing business and basketball, and Brooke and Haley were in the back, talking about the wedding and the baby.

"So, have you picked a date yet?" Haley asked Brooke.

"Yup. May 12th of next year." Brooke told her.

"Hey, that's exactly ten months from now." Haley said.

"You're right." Brooke said. "And when's your exact due date?"

"November 22nd." Haley said. "Now we have two dates to look forward too."

"I'm really excited." Brooke said.

"Me too." Haley added.

Brooke looked down at her ring. She smiled to herself, once again wondering how Lucas picked out something so perfect to express his love for her. But even if he had given her a plastic ring from a twenty-five-cent machine, she wouldn't have cared. As long as she and Lucas were going to be together for the rest of their lives, she didn't care if they lived poor and half-naked in a hut. She was extremely excited to get married and start the family she always knew she wanted with Lucas. They were made for each other, and she knew it well.

"Okay. Let's play a game." Brooke said when the car became silent.

"What kind of game?" Haley asked.

"Let's count the number of red cars we see from here until we get to the state border. And whoever counts the most gets to decide the next place we stop to eat." Brooke explained.

"Hey! Not fair! How am I supposed to count while I'm driving?" Nathan whined.

"Oh, Natey. You can sit out for this round, and then we can play another game." Brooke said to him as if he was a child.

"Fine. Go ahead." Nathan gave in.

After about a half an hour, they had made it to the end of Maryland.

"Okay. Now we all have to write our numbers down so nobody cheats." Brooke said, handing them little pieces of scrap paper. Brooke, Haley and Lucas wrote them down and handed them to Nathan for him to read when he had stopped the car while waiting to pay the toll.

"Okay. Brooke counted 46, Haley counted 52 and Lucas counted 19. 19? Luke, you obviously had something else on your mind." Nathan said.

"Maybe. Or maybe I just wanted to be nice and let one of the girls win." Lucas told him.

"Okay, who cares! I won anyway!" Haley said. "And therefore we are eating at the next Taco Bell, because I am so craving a burrito right now!"

They all sighed at Haley's request, but gave into it anyway since she was both the winner and the one pregnant. But after the 14 hour drive that finally brought them to Tree Hill, it didn't matter who won or what they ate, because they were all way to excited to think about that as they drove up to their brand new houses.

**A/N:** So, now there's a whole new twist to this, huh? Hope you like it, though. Reviews would be appreciated! Oh, and the title's after Love Makes the World Go Round by Ashlee Simpson.


	9. We're Young and Beautiful

**Author's Note: **Thanks for the reviews! Enjoy!

Chapter 9 - We're Young and Beautiful

Brooke squealed and clapped her hands as she and Lucas stood on the driveway of their brand new house. Nathan and Haley dropped them off so they could see their new house and would come back later. They just looked at it for awhile, taking it all in. The burgundy shutters and sand-colored siding looked fabulous. There were beautiful flowers and bushes lining the walkway up to the door. It was huge. And it was perfect.

"Lucas! This is our house!" She exclaimed, standing about eight feet away from him, watching him gaze up at his new home in a pair of jeans and a t-shirt with one hand on his navy blue baseball cap.

"You've got that right." He replied. She smiled and squealed again from all the excitement and ran over to him and jumped into his arms, wrapping her legs around his waist and kissing him passionately. She jumped down and smoothed out her jeans and pink tank top and stood next to him, holding his hand.

"Alright. Wanna go inside?" He asked.

"I thought you'd never ask." Brooke said. Together they walked up the path and to the burgundy door, getting more excited with every step. Lucas looked over at Brooke as he put the key in the lock and turned it, and she grabbed the handle and opened the door. They both took a deep breath as they saw the huge staircase and shiny wooden floors.

"This is gorgeous." Brooke said, walking in and out of all the rooms with Lucas in toe.

"Oh! Look at our kitchen!" She practically screamed as she saw the sparkling granite countertop and french doors that led out to a bright sun room. Before Lucas could respond, she was already dragging him out of the kitchen and up the stairs to see the five bedrooms. They stood in the hallway, not knowing which door to open up first since their were at least 7.

"Broody, we're going to have to have a lot of kids to fill up all of these rooms." Brooke told him, one hand on her hip and the other securely held by Lucas's.

"That's exactly what I was thinking." He said, squeezing her hand and bending down to give her a kiss before bringing her to into one of the rooms.

"Come on, I think this is the master bedroom." Lucas told her as he opened up the door and revealed a huge bedroom with a bathroom off of it. She gasped in awe of the size of the room, wondering where she was going to find furniture to fit in it.

"Wow." Lucas said.

"Wow is right." Brooke responded. Lucas watched her examine the room as he let go of her hand for her to walk around, finally feeling relief that she was seriously good with all of this. He had been slightly nervous that she might realize that this isn't what she wanted. But now, standing in the bedroom of their new house where they would be living for the rest of their lives together, he was confident that they were both going to be happy.

"Hm...what color should we paint this room?" Brooke asked, standing by the windows on the opposite side of the room.

"Whatever makes you happy, babe." Lucas told her. She smiled and walked over to him and draped her arms around his neck.

"I love you." Brooke whispered.

"I love you, too." He responded, bringing her in for a long hug.

---

After checking out all of the rooms upstairs, Brooke and Lucas heard Nathan and Haley come in downstairs.

"Hello?" He yelled from downstairs.

"Coming!" Brooke yelled, going to greet her first house guests. She ran down the stairs and Lucas followed.

"Isn't this fabulous?" She asked Haley.

"Absolutely." Haley said. "Okay. Go get all your boxes out of the trailer so we can then bring Nathan's car home for the night. I figure you'll probably want it all as soon as you can get it."

They nodded and went out to the trailer, carrying in the all the boxes with "BL" written on the side in bold letters. Half an hour later, everything was lined up in the foyer. Haley yawned as she looked at her watch.

"Alright, we should get going, it's getting late." Nathan said, realizing his wife was getting tired.

"Okay. Well have a good first night in your house, we'll be over to see it tomorrow." Brooke told him.

"Cool. We'll see you guys then." Nathan said as he and Haley walked out the door.

"Okay, so it may be late for pregnant little Haley, but not-so-pregnant Brooke wants to do some unpacking since it's only about 8:30." Brooke said after they walked out the door. Lucas laughed.

"I agree. How about we start with the kitchen?" Lucas asked.

"Sounds fine with me." Brooke agreed.

---

After a three weeks of unpacking, moving in furniture and painting, both the Scott and Scott-Davis households were completely done. They both wondered how they managed to do it so quickly, especially since Lucas and Nathan had to start working only a week after they moved. It was now the beginning of August and Haley and Brooke were in the baby's nursery. Since Haley insisted on painting the room lavender, they decided a fairy theme would be the way to go.

"Only another four months." Brooke said.

"I know. I can't wait. I just want her to be here." Haley said, putting her hands on her little bump.

"So have you put together a registry yet for what you want for the baby?" Brooke asked.

"No, actually. Nathan and I have to do that this weekend." Haley told her. "But I've been looking at things online, so I've already got a lot of things in my head."

"That's good. You're going to need to do it soon, anyway." Brooke said, hoping that it would give her a clue to hurry up so Brooke could send out the invitations to Haley's surprise baby shower.

"I know where you're getting at, Brooke. And believe me, there's no way anyone's going to be able to get a shower past me. One, someone's obviously going to slip, and chances are it's going to be you, and two, I can always figure out when someone's going to surprise me. It's like a sixth sense I have." Haley told her. She whined.

"Okay, well I don't care, you're going to have to act like you're surprised, but you still need to do the damn registry!" Brooke exclaimed.

"Oh, don't panic, it'll be done by this weekend. Hound Nathan if you seriously want it done as soon as possible." Haley said.

"I should" Brooke responded. As if on cue, Nathan came in downstairs.

"I'm home!" He yelled.

"And so am I!" Lucas yelled, too.

"Lucas is here?" Haley asked.

"Apparently. Okay, let's get you down these steps, Hales." Brooke said, taking her hand and guiding her down the stairs, which made Haley nervous ever since she was pregnant. She was fearful of falling and hurting the baby.

"Hey, babe." Lucas said as Brooke and Haley made it down the stairs.

"Hi. How was your day?" She asked, giving him a kiss and playing with his tie. She loved that Lucas had to go to work in a suit in tie everyday, he just looked so good in it.

"Just great. I saw your car here so I figured I'd stop by." Lucas told her. "Speaking of which, someone needs to get a new car soon, it looks pretty queer that we have two matching BMW convertibles in the driveway." Brooke laughed.

"Yeah. No worries, my lease is up in a month, I think. Until then, someone can make sure they park in the garage." She told him.

"Okay. Well now that that's solved, we should go home for dinner. Bye Hales. Bye Nate." Lucas said.

"Bye!" They yelled.

---

Two months later, on October 15th to be exact, Brooke was buzzing around her house, getting everything set up for the baby shower. She figured it'd be less obvious and more comfortable for Haley if she had it at the house, plus she could have everything exactly the way she wanted it. Nathan, Lucas and Brooke knew that Haley knew a baby shower was coming soon, so they made sure they were extra quiet about it. Brooke had come up with a really good plan, too. Since Nathan and Lucas sometimes had work affairs on Saturday, it wasn't unusual for Brooke to have to take Haley to her doctor's appointments once in awhile. This particular Saturday, Nathan left his house early, in a suit, pretending that he was going to work and actually went to Brooke and Lucas's. They set up the big stuff, and Brooke told Haley that she would pick her up to go to the doctor's office at 12:30, even though Brooke had rescheduled the appointment unbeknownst to Haley. What Haley didn't know was that Brooke was going to pretend that she had forgotten something at the house and would bring Haley back to her shower.

"Okay. You guys need to be out of here like, now, since this is an girls-only thing." Brooke told Nathan and Lucas. "The only thing you need to do is come back later to help bring all the stuff to Haley's."

"Okay. We'll get out of here now. Good luck." Nathan said. Lucas kissed her and left with Nathan.

"Okay, everyone." Brooke yelled. "I'm going to go get Haley and I'll be back in no more than five minutes, so be prepared!"

Running out the door at 12:27, Brooke hopped into her car and beeped when she pulled into Haley's driveway. She laughed when she realized that she was wearing only a sweatshirt and pair of jeans over her getting-big tummy. Luckily, Brooke had planned ahead and brought nice clothes for Haley to change into, realizing that she'd be mortified if she had to be at a party like that. She rolled down her window and greeted Haley.

"Hey Hales. Get in." Brooke said through the window.

"I'm coming. The bigger I get, the more time I need." She told her. Brooke laughed. Haley got in and sat down, and before Brooke could get out of the driveway, she stopped.

"Crap. I forgot my sunglasses. I hate driving without sunglasses." Brooke lied.

"Well, we still have time, we can stop at your house to get them." Haley stated.

"Okay. It'll only take two seconds." Brooke told her. Brooke started smiling as she pulled up to her house and Haley saw cars all over the place. Then she looked at Brooke, who had a full face of makeup on and dress clothes. Suddenly she realized what was happening.

"Oh. My. God. Brooke. I'm gonna kill you. This is my freakin' baby shower and I look like I came from the dead." Haley yelled.

"That's why Brooke thought ahead and brought Haley a change of nice clothes and makeup so you can get changed in the garage before you go in." Brooke told her, grabbing a bag from the backseat and handing it to her.

"Okay. So maybe I won't kill you. And how did you manage to keep this a secret until now?" She asked, while getting out of the car.

"I'm just that good. Come on, let's go." Brooke said. Haley changed and Brooke helped her put makeup on and they walked into the shower. Haley was so happy to see everyone. Her mom was there, Deb, Karen, Peyton, friends from high school, aunts and cousins from both Haley and Nathan's sides. She gave everyone hugs and was so grateful to have such good family and friends.

Lunch was served and games were played, and before Haley started to open presents, she made a little speech.

"Okay. First I want to thank everyone so much for coming. I really and truly appreciate it, and so does Nathan and the baby. Second, yes, I do have a name picked out, but no ones going to find out what it is until the day she's born. That even includes Brooke." She said. Everyone laughed.

"Third, I want to thank everyone for being so supportive and generous to me not only now but my whole life. Everyone in this room has impacted me in some way. So, thank you. Now I'll open up the gifts before I ramble on too much." Haley finished, receiving a few chuckles from the group.

Haley opened up everything. Between all the clothes and strollers, diapers and swings, she could open up a store. Nathan and Lucas, as well as Haley's father, came to the party around four-thirty, just in time for everyone to congratulate Nathan. By five o'clock, everyone had left, leaving Brooke, Lucas, Nathan and Haley with tons and tons of baby stuff. They all sat on the living room couches, except Nathan, who was looking at all the different gifts.

"I think this is enough stuff for four babies. Are you sure you didn't tell everyone we were having quadruplets, Hales?" Nathan asked.

"I might have slipped once or twice." Haley joked. Nathan looked at her in surprise. "Just kidding."

"Good. Okay. Luke, you can help me grab all this stuff and put it in the car. We're going to need to make more than one trip, though." Nathan said.

"Alright." Lucas said, getting up and grabbing boxes.

While the boys packed up, Brooke was grilling Haley about the baby shower.

"So you're really not going to tell me the name?" Brooke asked.

"Nope." Haley said. Brooke could tell she wasn't budging.

"Fine. Okay, so what was your favorite present?" Brooke asked.

"Well, you know the answer to that." Haley said. Brooke smiled, knowing what Haley was talking about. Brooke had made the bedding and curtains for the nursery, and it was white and lavender with fairies.

"Okay. Least favorite present?" Brooke questioned.

"Um...the clothes my Aunt Janice gave me. They're just plain ugly. Hopefully she put a receipt in there." Haley said. Brooke laughed.

"Okay. So overall you had a good time?" Brooke asked hopefully.

"I had a great time. Thank you so much, Brooke." Haley said, moving over on the couch to give Haley a big hug.

"No problem." Brooke responded.

Ten minutes later, Nathan and Lucas returned and had gotten all the gifts over to Nathan and Haley's.

"Alright, Hales, let's go. I'm gonna take you out for dinner." Nathan said.

"Well, that was unexpected. But I'll take you up on the offer." Haley said, getting up off the couch to give hugs. "Bye guys. Thanks."

"No problem." Lucas said, sitting back down on the couch with Brooke when they left. Brooke rested her head in his lap.

"Another month and they're going to have a kid." Lucas said in amazement.

"Yeah." Brooke responded. She paused. "Seven months and we're going to be married."

"I can't wait." Lucas said, looking down at Brooke and tucking a piece of hair behind her ear. "We really should start planning. I'm actually surprised the whole thing isn't completely done."

"I know. It's just been so crazy with the move and Haley and everything. I think we should get what we haven't already done finished by Christmas time, though." Brooke said.

"I agree." Lucas added. Brooke closed her eyes.

"Mmm...how about we just sleep here and clean up and eat whenever we wake up?" Brooke mumbled.

"Well, I'm not going to argue with that." Lucas said, shifting slightly into a more comfortable position and soon falling asleep.

---

If I get 12 reviews, bringing the grand total of reviews up to 100 for this story, I'll post the next chapter tomorrow. Deal? Cool. Review.


	10. Beautifully Broken

**Author's Note:** Here it is. Like I promised. Read, Review & Enjoy!

Chapter 10 - Beautifully Broken

Exactly one week later, Brooke and Lucas were sitting around their dining room table with Jocelyn Cooper, one of the most prestigious wedding planners in North Carolina.

"Alright. I think we've got most of the things I need to help you take care of done, but let's just do a quick review." Jocelyn said. Brooke and Lucas nodded.

"Okay, Brooke you're going to have your dress designed by Maggie Filmore. Lucas has not yet decided on what to do for a tuxedo. The wedding will be at the North Park Hotel in Raliegh. There will be approximately 150 guests. There will be two bridesmaids, two groomsmen, and a flower girl and ring bearer. The color scheme will be green and pink. Flowers will be arranged by Greston's..." Jocelyn went over everything they had discussed, and majority of the things were done. Brooke was amazed at how much easier everything was if you got a wedding planner.

"That all sounds perfect." Brooke told her, grabbing Lucas's hand under the table.

"Fabulous. I'll be going now, but we'll meet again soon in case you need to make changes." Jocelyn explained while getting up.

"Great. Thank you so much." Lucas said as he played with Brooke's ring, a habit he had picked up whenever he'd hold her left hand. They showed her out and Brooke decided to take a trip to the designer's store to get some ideas.

"You know what? I'm see if Haley wants to come to Maggie's with me to see about my gown." Brooke told Lucas.

"That's cool, I'll be here...doing nothing." He responded.

"Of course. I'll see you later." She said, grabbing a coat and giving him a quick kiss. She got into her new Range Rover and headed to Haley's. She pulled into the driveway and saw Haley outside inspecting the mums that she had recently planted.

"Hey, Hales. Wanna come with me to Maggie's to see about my dress and bridesmaid dresses?" Brooke asked.

"Absolutely. Let me just grab a coat and my purse. I'll be out in two seconds." Haley said, quickly coming in and out of the house.

Twenty-five minutes later, Brooke and Haley were in Maggie's gazing at all the beautiful dresses.

"Omigod! Look no further, I have found the bridesmaid's dresses!" Brooke yelled to Haley, who was on the other side of the store. Brooke had a tea-length, satin, mint green dress in her hand, that had a pearl belt and bow around the waist.

"Wow. That's gorgeous. Oh, I'm so excited to wear it!" Haley squealed.

"As soon as you pop out that baby, we're coming to get yours fitted." Brooke said, getting excited. Haley looked at the price tag.

"Brooke! These dresses are seven hundred dollars a piece!" Haley whispered loudly.

"And? If I remember correctly our husbands are the head honchos of Scott Motor Company. Plus, I'm only having two bridesmaids, which are also going to be my two maids of honor, because I couldn't possibly choose between you and Peyton." Brooke told her.

"Miss Davis?" A saleswoman asked, her name tag reading 'Kate.'

"That's me." Brooke replied.

"Fabulous. Maggie will see you now." Kate told her.

"Thank you." Brooke said, following Kate to Maggie's office. Brooke walked into another room with Haley in toe, gazing at all the beautiful fabrics and patterns that were placed messily throughout the room.

"Hello. I'm Maggie." Maggie said, getting up to shake hands.

"Brooke Davis. And this is my friend and bridesmaid Haley Scott." Brooke told her. Haley gave

a quick hello before sitting down next to Brooke at a table.

After an hour of going through sketches, fabrics, patterns and trims, Brooke finally put together her dream wedding gown, or gowns, since she had one for the ceremony at the church and one for the reception.

"Alright. So these should be ready in six to eight weeks. The first fitting will be shortly after the new year." Maggie said, after finishing up.

"Perfect. Thank you so much." Brooke said, shaking her hand again and leaving with Haley.

"So what do you think?" Brooke asked Haley as she pushed open the door and walked out to the car.

"They're both going to be beautiful." Haley told her with a smile.

"I hope so. I'm so excited." Brooke squealed, getting into her car.

Brooke pulled out of the driveway and onto the road, still discussing the gowns with Haley. Droplets of rain fell down onto the windshield.

"I didn't know it was supposed to rain." Haley said.

"Yeah. Me either. October's weird, though." Brooke told her. Haley was looking out the window when a strange sight caught her eye.

"Brooke! Slow down, wait! That truck's on the wrong side of the - " Haley yelled before Brooke spun the wheel and their car was hit from the side.

---

Lucas decided to stop by Nathan's since he knew he was home alone because both the girls were out. They were sitting around the table talking and laughing when the phone rang.

"Ugh. I hate the phone." Nathan said, rising from his seat in the kitchen to grab the phone on the wall.

"Hello?" Nathan said, picking up the phone.

"Can I please speak with Nathan Scott?" A man asked.

"This is he." Nathan responded.

"Hello. I'm Jack Richards from St. Michael's Hospital. I'm sorry to tell you this but your wife and her friend were in a car accident and they're currently being treated but we need you to come down here." He said. Nathan froze.

"Holy shit. Are they okay? What about my baby?" Nathan asked frantically. Hearing Nathan's words caused Lucas to shoot up, ideas of what might be happening scrambling through his head.

"All I know is that they're alive. The sooner you get here, the better." Jack said. Nathan hung up the phone.

"Holy shit, Luke. Haley and Brooke were in a car accident. We have to get down there." Nathan said. With tears in both of their eyes, they rushed as fast as they could to the hospital. Nathan parked in what he knew well was a tow-away zone, but didn't care, and rushed inside to the desk.

"Please tell me where my wife is. Haley Scott. She's pregnant and was in a car accident." Nathan demanded.

"Her doctor is right over there." The woman told him, pointing to a tall man who was speaking with a few other doctors. Nathan and Lucas ran over to him.

"Excuse me, I'm Nathan Scott, Haley Scott's husband. Please tell me what's going on." Nathan said.

"And I'm Lucas Scott, Brooke Davis's fiancé. Is she okay?" Lucas asked nervously.

"Currently Haley and the baby are fine. A few bruises and cuts here and there, but she's okay and she's right in there." The man said, showing Nathan where Haley was. Nathan ran into the room as fast as he could.

"What about Brooke?" Lucas pleaded.

"Mr. Scott, Brooke is currently in a coma. She also has a broken wrist." The doctor told him.

"A...a coma?" Lucas choked.

"Yes. She was knocked out during the accident and had some pressure on her brain, which caused her to slip into a coma. However, after doing some testing, the pressure caused no damage, so now we just need to wait for Brooke to wake up and she should be fine." The doctor explained.

"How long will it be until she wakes up?" Lucas asked, feeling a tad confused and some slight relief.

"It could be within the next five minutes, the next five days. It depends. But since there is no brain damage, I would say she'll wake up within the next two days." He told him.

"Okay. Where can I see her?" Lucas questioned.

"She's been moved up to the fourth floor into her own room. They'll tell you which exact room when you get up there." The doctor said.

"Okay. Thank you." Lucas said, already jogging towards the elevator.

Meanwhile, Nathan had found Haley in a small room where she had a few bandages, but otherwise looked fine.

"Oh, Hales. I was so scared." He said, running over to her and wrapping his arms around her. She kissed him and pulled away.

"I know. I was so nervous. But I'm fine, what happened to Brooke? The truck hit her side of the car and I could tell she was knocked out." Haley asked.

"I'm not sure, exactly. As soon as they told me you were okay, I ran in here to see you." He said.

"Go find out, Nathan. I'm really worried." She told him.

"Okay. Stay here. I'll be right back." He told her, giving her a kiss on the forehead. She nodded and he walked out into the lobby, seeing Lucas run over to the elevator.

"Luke!" Nathan called after him.

"Come with me!" Lucas said. Nathan caught up to him and followed him onto the elevator.

"Haley wanted me to find out how Brooke was. Is she okay?" Nathan asked.

"She's in a coma. Pressure was put onto her brain so it caused her to slip into a coma but there was no damage so they said she'd be fine, she just needs to wake up." He explained.

"Okay. As long as she's going to be okay." Nathan said. "Are we going to see her?"

"Yeah. She's on the fourth floor." Lucas said as the elevator opened and the two men walked out to the front desk.

"Hi. Lucas Scott, I'm here to see my fiancé, Brooke Davis." Lucas told the woman at the desk.

"She's in room 423." She said.

"Thank you." Lucas replied. Walking towards the door, he took a deep breath as he pushed the handle and walked in with Nathan behind him. He saw Brooke in the bed, still and peaceful as could be. It was hurtful for him. She was there, but he couldn't do anything to help her get better or wake her up and it killed him. A young nurse was also standing next to the bed, writing something down on a clipboard.

"Hi. I'm Wendy. Are you related to Miss Davis?" The nurse asked, looking up from her clipboard.

"I'm her fiancé." Lucas said. "And this is her soon-to-be brother-in-law."

"Oh, good. I hope you know that Brooke really is okay. She's just not awake yet. Have you spoken to a doctor?" Wendy questioned.

"I did. He explained a lot to me. But until she's awake and back in my arms, I won't be convinced of anything." Lucas replied.

"I know what you mean. I'd be the same way." Wendy said. She continued writing and then proceeded to leave the room. Nathan and Lucas sat down in the two chairs next to the bed. After a few minutes of silence, Lucas spoke up.

"Oh, sorry, Nate. Go back down to Haley. I totally forgot, I apologize." Lucas said.

"It's fine, Luke. I want to be here for you. And Haley will want to, too, as soon as she gets out of here." Nathan told him. "But I am going to go back down and check on her. I'll be back as soon as I can, which might be later on. Do you want me to call everyone since you can't use the phone here? I know you're not going to want to leave until she wakes up."

"That'd be perfect. Thanks, Nate." Lucas said, giving him a small smile. Nathan patted him on the back.

"It's gonna be okay, Luke. I promise. I'll be back as soon as I can." Nathan said, getting up to go back down to Haley. Lucas heard the door open and shut as Nathan walked out and he just sat there, gazing at Brooke. He wondered how she managed to look so perfect as she was lying in a hospital bed with not a stitch of makeup on and wearing a hospital gown. Noticing her clothes had been changed, he also noticed that her engagement ring and necklace were gone. He wondered what happened to them, if they were somewhere in the room or they had somehow gotten lost in the accident. He shook his head as he realized what stupid things he was thinking of at a time like this. He took her small hand between his two big ones and started talking to her.

"I've heard that when people are in a coma, they can still hear what's going on, so I figured I'd keep you company and talk to you for a little bit." Lucas told her.

"I'm scared, Brooke. Not because you're hurt or in pain, but because I can't do anything to help you. I know you're going to be fine, but I just can't help it. I love you, Brooke. More than anything in the whole entire world. Never in my whole life have I ever felt like anyone the way I do about you. I'm right here, Brooke, and I'm not going anywhere until you wake up." He finished. He continued to hold on to her hand and rested his head on the bed, not realizing that soon he would be asleep.

An hour later, Lucas awoke to Nathan coming back into the room with Haley. Lucas looked up at Brooke, who was still not awake, and got up to greet them both.

"I'm so glad you're okay, Hales." Lucas said, giving her a hug.

"I know. I'm sorry that Brooke ended up worse than me." She said.

"It's okay. She'll be fine." Lucas said.

"How are you holding up, man?" Nathan asked.

"I'm okay. I don't know how long I've been asleep for, though. What time is it?" He asked.

"It's about five o'clock." Nathan answered. "Want me to go and get you something to eat?"

"That actually would be great, thank you." Lucas said. Nathan left to go down to the cafeteria, leaving Lucas and Haley in the room. They walked over to the chairs and sat down. Lucas noticed Haley wipe a tear from her eye.

"Are you okay, Haley?" Lucas asked.

"It just hurts to see her like this. I feel guilty that I'm fine and she's laying there, helpless." Haley said.

"Hales. There's nothing you could have done. It's no one's fault but the truck driver's. And she'd going to be fine." Lucas assured her.

"I know. I just want her to wake up." Haley added.

"Me too, Hales. Me too." Lucas said.


	11. The Day Has Come

**Author's Note:** Thanks for the reviews! Here's Chapter 11. Title after Cheyenne Kimball's "The Day Has Come."

Chapter 11 - The Day Has Come

Fifteen minutes later, Nathan returned with food for himself, Lucas and Haley. They quietly talked while they ate, all eyes on Brooke. It wasn't long before Karen and Keith walked through the door.

"Lucas! Honey, I'm so sorry." Karen said, giving him a hug.

"It's okay, mom. She's going to be fine." Lucas told her.

"I know." Karen stated, walking over to Brooke and running her hand softly down the side of her face.

"When did this all happen?" Keith asked.

"Around 3 o'clock, right Hales?" Lucas questioned.

"Yeah." She replied. Keith nodded. Lucas explained what happened and told him and Karen what the doctor said. Peyton came in five minutes later.

"Hey, Peyt." Lucas said, getting up to say hello. A man followed in behind her. "Jake?"

"Lucas? I haven't seen you in ages! What're you doing here?" Jake asked.

"You two know each other?" Peyton asked.

"Yeah. We went to high school together. Oh, wow! Nathan, Haley, Keith, Karen! I didn't know this is who I was coming to see!" He exclaimed as he went over to them to say hello.

"How's Brooke?" Peyton asked Lucas.

"She's fine, Peyt. No worries. She should be awake in the next few days." He told her.

"You seem awfully calm." Peyton said.

"Well, I figure there's no real reason to freak out when she's going to be fine." Lucas said.

"That's good." She said.

"So how'd you find Jake?" Lucas asked her.

"He's kind of my new boyfriend. We met at a bar a few weeks ago, but I haven't told anyone about him until now." She told him.

"He's a good guy." Lucas told her.

"I know. What a small world." Peyton stated.

"Yeah. It is." He replied.

Over the next three days, friends, family and doctors came and went to see Brooke, who was still not awake. Although the doctor had told him two days, Lucas wasn't scared, because he knew in his heart that she was going to be okay. He had barely gotten any sleep, and by the time Tuesday night rolled around, he was so exhausted that he slept the full night in the chair. He woke up the next day to the sunlight pouring in through the window, and he squinted his eyes as they adjusted to it. He then looked over at Brooke, who's eyes were open and looking out the window as well.

"Brooke!" He yelled, jumping out of his chair and sitting next to her on the bed.

"Hey, Broody." She replied hoarsely.

"How long have you been awake?" He questioned.

"Only a few minutes." She responded.

"How are you feeling?" He asked, tucking a lock of hair behind her ear.

"Not bad. Thirsty, though." She told him. He grabbed the glass of water that was sitting on the table next to her bed and helped her lift her head so she could drink it.

"Thanks." She replied after she finished. "I heard you talking to me. It killed me that I just couldn't respond."

"It doesn't matter, babe. All that matters is that you're okay." He told her.

"Yeah. Haley's okay, right?" She asked.

"Haley's fine. And the baby." He said.

"Thank god. We were lucky, Luke."

"I know. I don't know what I would have done if I lost either of you, especially you."

"You don't have to worry about that, I'm here and in one piece."

"Yeah. Thank god." Lucas said.

"I'm assuming my parents weren't here, right?" She asked. He shook his head.

"I'm sorry, baby, we just couldn't get in touch with them." He told her.

"It's okay. I figured that would happen. It doesn't matter though. As long as I have you." She said. He bent down and kissed her for the first time in days. It felt so good to be able to do that again. They continued to talk for another few minutes before a doctor came in.

"Miss Davis. So good to see you awake. How long have you been up for?" The doctor asked.

"Only about ten minutes." She told him.

"Okay. And how are you feeling?" He asked while checking out her and the machines she was hooked up to.

"Okay. A little weak, but I'm not hurting or anything. Except for this wrist, apparently." She said, holding it up.

"Yes. That was the only thing that you broke during the accident. I want to ask you a few questions to check your memory. Can you tell me your full name?"

"Brooke Penelope Davis, soon to be Scott." She told him, with a smile.

"Good. And can you tell me where you live?"

"29 Hillside Avenue. Tree Hill, North Carolina."

"And what year is it, Miss Davis?"

"2010."

"Okay. I think you're alright. You don't feel like you've lost any memory of any sort?" He asked.

"No. I think I'm good." She told him.

"Great." He said, proceeding to write things down as he checked her out. Lucas left the room to call Nathan and Haley to tell them she was awake, and within a half an hour, they were at the hospital. They walked in to find Brooke sitting up in the bed and Lucas at her side. They were laughing about something. Haley immediately got tears in her eyes upon seeing Brooke awake and well.

"Hey, Hales." Brooke said when she saw them walk in the room. Lucas turned his head and saw them walk in and Haley ran over to her and gave her a giant hug.

"I'm so glad you're okay." Haley whispered.

"Thanks, Hales. I'm so glad you and the baby are okay, too." Brooke told her. Both girls laughed in relief of seeing each other okay again and continued to talk.

"So the next time we'll be here will be for the baby." Brooke said, happily.

"Ah. That's scary. Only another 3 and a half weeks." Haley said.

"Didn't that go ridiculously fast?" Nathan asked.

"Yeah. Definitely." Haley replied. "Omigod! I almost forgot! Did Lucas tell you about Peyton's new boyfriend?"

"Peyton has a new boyfriend! Broody, you didn't tell me this!" Brooke said. "Fill me in!"

"His name's Jake and I know him! We went to high school together. He dropped out, but he was such a good kid. He has a five year old daughter named Jenny." Haley told her.

"Hm. Sounds interesting. I'll have to meet him."

---

Brooke returned home four days later, following orders from the doctor to take it easy. Lucas took some time off from work, and him, Brooke and Haley would hang out all day. After getting the okay from the doctor that she could return to her normal activities a week later, the four spent the next week preparing for the baby, and now "Little Miss Scott," as Brooke referred to her, was going to be here at any moment. It was a Friday afternoon and Brooke and Haley were currently getting pedicures at the local salon, and Peyton was supposed to be joining them.

"I hope the baby's here in time for Thanksgiving." Haley said.

"Yeah. Well it's only the twentieth now, so even if she comes within the next two or three days, you'll be able to be home for Thanksgiving. If not we can bring a turkey to the hospital for you!" Brooke told her.

"Aw, how nice of you, Brooke." Haley said, smiling. She laughed.

"Where on earth is Peyton?" Brooke asked, getting impatient and dialing her number as best she could with one hand.

"Hello?" Peyton answered.

"Where are you?" Brooke asked.

"Well I was going to surprise you and bring Jake with me, but since there's weird traffic that's making me delayed, you're no longer going to be surprised when you see him. I bet you guys are already done with your pedicures, huh?" Peyton asked.

"Kinda." Brooke told her.

"Well then how about I just meet you back at your house?" Peyton asked.

"That's fine if you don't mind. Any clue how long you'll be?" Brooke asked.

"Probably another twenty minutes." Peyton said.

"Cool. See you then." Brooke told her, hanging up the phone. "Okay, well Peyton's not meeting us here but she's going to meet us at my house and guess who she's bringing?"

"Jake?" Haley asked.

"How'd you know?" Brooke whined.

"The volume on your phone was loud enough for me to hear." Haley explained.

"Oh." She laughed. "Sorry."

The girls waited until their nails were dry and then returned to Brooke's house and waited for Peyton. Haley called Nathan and told them that Jake was stopping by, so Lucas and Nathan skipped out of work early to come and see him. While patiently waiting in the living room, they heard a knock at the door.

"Coming!" Brooke squealed. She ran over to the door and found Peyton standing there with a guy and a small girl.

"Come in!" Brooke said. "You must be Jake."

"That's me. It's good to finally meet you awake, Brooke." Jake said, giving her a hug. She laughed.

"Thanks. You too. And who's this pretty little girl?" Brooke asked, bending down to match the blonde-haired girl's height.

"I'm Jenny." Jenny told Brooke.

"Nice to meet you, Jenny. I'm Brooke." Brooke said. Lucas watched Brooke with Jenny. She was so good with kids. He loved it.

Peyton, Jake and Jenny ended up staying until dinner time, so Lucas ordered a couple pizza's and the group enjoyed a relaxing and fun night. It was now around eight o'clock and Peyton could see that Jenny was getting tired.

"We should probably get going so we can bring Jenny home for bed. And you should probably be going to bed soon, Haley!" Peyton joked.

"Oh, believe me. Most nights I'm in bed by nine o'clock." Haley replied. Everyone laughed. "Jake, you'll tell me the truth. Is having a newborn in the house as hard as it seems like it's going to be?"

"Pretty much.You'll have plenty of sleepless nights, you'll get ridiculously nervous and frustrated when you can't figure out why she's crying and it's going to put a lot of pressure on the two of you. But, in the end, it's all worth it." Jake explained, rubbing Jenny's back as she laid on his chest, falling asleep. Haley looked over at Nathan and they smiled at each other, knowing this was going to be hard but the best thing that ever happened to them.

"Alright. Thank you for a great night." Peyton said, giving goodbye hugs to all of them. "And let us know when the baby arrives!"

As soon as they left, the four returned into the kitchen to clean up.

"I like Jake. I think him and Peyton fit really well together." Brooke said to Haley.

"I agree." Haley replied.

"What happened to Jenny's mother?" Brooke asked.

"Well, she kind of left Jake and Jenny when Jenny was only a few months old. So Jake practically raised her by himself. She tried to get custody of her a few times but never succeeded. I think she finally just gave up and moved away. No one's heard from her in while, I'm pretty sure." Haley explained.

"Oh. That's sad." Brooke said.

"Yeah." Haley agreed, as she walked over to the table to grab another dirty plate to wash. She grabbed it off the table and dropped it before she reached the sink due to a pain in her lower back. Brooke jumped at the sound of the crash.

"Ow." Haley choked.

"Haley! Are you okay?" Brooke asked, running over to her.

"I'm okay. I've been having these pains in my back for the past two hours though." Haley told her. Brooke's eyes widened.

"How frequently?" Brooke questioned.

"I don't know. They're at pretty even interv- Holy shit! I'm in labor, aren't I?" She realized.

"Yes! Omigod! Nathan! Lucas!" Brooke called. "Haley's in labor, we have to go!"

--

**A/N:** Ah. I know, I left you hanging. The more reviews the faster I'll update!


	12. Pretty Little Thing

Chapter 12 - Pretty Little Thing

Nathan and Lucas ran in from the other room.

"She's...She's what?" Nathan asked.

"In labor! Come on! We have to get to the hospital!" Brooke yelled, moving Haley towards the door.

"I'll go bring the car to the door." Lucas said, grabbing the keys off the hook and running out the door. Nathan grabbed Haley's other arm and wrapped around his shoulder as he carried her out the door. Lucas drove as fast as he could to the hospital, and arrived in a very quick fifteen minutes. Four hours later, Lucas, Brooke, Karen, Keith and Deb were patiently anticipating the arrival of the baby in the waiting room.

"Well, since we know it's a girl, we can't exactly make bets on what it's gonna be." Brooke said, interrupting the silence that had fallen upon the tired group for the past half an hour.

"True. We can make bets on what time she'll arrive." Keith suggested.

"Okay. Well if it's 12:30 A.M. now, I'm gonna go with 1:30." Brooke said.

"2:15." Lucas added.

"1:00." Deb said.

"I'm gonna say 1:30 with Brooke." Keith told them.

"I bet you Nathan will be out here within 15 minutes." Karen finished.

"Okay. What does the winner get?" Lucas asked.

"Five dollars. Each of us gives one." Keith said.

"Okay." "Cool." "Good." The others said.

Ten minutes passed by. Every time someone walked through the doors leading down the hallway where Haley's room was, everyone's heads immediately flew to that direction. Five times, it was a doctor. Until now.

"Nathan!" Deb yelled and everyone got up and walked over to him.

"She's here!" He said proudly. Deb and Karen got tears in their eyes.

"Congratulations!" Lucas said, shaking his hand.

"Details!" Brooke demanded.

"She's seven pounds, three ounces and twenty inches long." Nathan explained.

"And what'd you decide to name her?" Karen asked.

"Lindsay Kate Scott." Nathan told them.

"Aw! That's so cute!" Brooke squealed.

"Thank you. Unfortunately, you're not gonna be able to see her tonight since it's late and visiting hours will start tomorrow." Nathan said.

"Okay. We'll be here bright and early!" Brooke said. "Congratulations, again, Nate. Tell Haley I said the same thing."

"Thanks, guys. I'm so glad you were all here. See you all tomorrow." Nathan said, receiving few last congratulatory hugs before heading back to see Haley.

"I'm so happy for them." Lucas said as the five went back to the chairs to grab their things before leaving the hospital.

"Me too." Deb agreed.

"Hey, I won the bet!" Karen realized.

"You did." Brooke agreed.

"Yes. Pay up, everyone." Karen said, putting her hand out while everyone grabbed a dollar out of their pockets.

---

Nathan walked back into the room and found a very exhausted Haley smiling at him.

"Hi, Daddy." She giggled. He laughed.

"How's Mommy doing?" He asked.

"Fine. I want them to bring Lindsay back." Haley whined.

"They're going to. She just needs to be cleaned off and everything." Nathan told her, now kneeling down on the floor so he was level with her and holding her hand. "I'm so proud of you, Hales."

"Thanks, Nathan." She said. "I'm so excited that she's finally here."

"Me too." Nathan agreed.

"Okay. Would you like to hold Miss Lindsay?" A nurse said as she held a very small and wrapped up Lindsay in her arms.

"Please!" Haley squealed, as the nurse handed Lindsay to her. "Aw. She's so gorgeous. She looks like you, Nate."

"You think so?" He asked.

"Definitely." Haley said. "She's so little!"

"I know. I forgot babies are actually that small." Nathan said.

"Here, you hold her." Haley said, handing Lindsay to Nathan. He cautiously took her from Haley's arms and stared at the sleeping baby. She had wisps of soft, dark blonde hair and blue eyes. She definitely looked like him, but also had perfect pieces of Haley in her, too. He couldn't believe that she was his; that this was something Haley and he had created together.

"Nathan, she's like the size of your hand!" Haley joked. He laughed.

"Maybe we'll be lucky and she'll sleep like this straight through the night." Nathan said.

"Don't get your hopes up." Haley said.

They continued to gaze at their gorgeous daughter before Haley fell asleep and the nurse took Lindsay into the nursery for the night. Nathan fell asleep on the couch. Morning quickly arrived and with the morning came the anxious visitors. Brooke could hardly wait as she and Lucas drove to the hospital at 10:30 the next morning. Luckily it was Saturday, so he had the day off. He had already told Nathan to take as much time off as he and Haley needed when they brought home the baby.

"Who do you think she's going to look like?" Brooke asked.

"I don't know, Brooke. Probably Nathan. I think most girls look like their fathers. In our case, however, I'd want our daughter to look like you." He said.

"You're so sweet. But a blonde-haired, blue-eyed girl that looked like you would knock all the boys dead." Brooke joked. He laughed.

"I wonder how Haley's doing." Lucas said.

"Me too. I'm sure she's doing great though, because we'd have heard otherwise by now." Brooke told him.

"Yeah. I was thinking the same thing." He stated.

"I wonder how badly it hurt." Brooke said.

"How badly what hurt?" He asked.

"Labor. Just thinking about it makes me cringe." Brooke said. Lucas laughed. Typical Brooke.

"I think it's probably all worth it when you've got a baby in your arms afterwards." Lucas said.

"Yeah. Me too." She said, looking over at him and smiling. She thought about how great it was going to be when she and Lucas had kids.

"You remembered the gift, right?" Lucas asked.

"Of course, Broody." She replied.

"Just checking." He said.

Ten minutes later, Brooke and Lucas were walking into Haley's room. She was sitting on the edge of the bed talking to Nathan, who was sitting down on the chair, holding Lindsay.

"Aw!" Brooke said, as she walked in and saw the baby in Nathan's arms.

"Hi, guys!" Haley said.

"Haley! Congratulations!" Brooke squealed, giving her a hug and handing her the gift.

"Congratulations, Hales." Lucas said, also giving her a hug.

"Thank you." Haley said, opening up the pink box. She quickly held up two tiny outfits. "Oh, these are gorgeous!"

"Glad you like them." Brooke said, while she and Lucas gazed at Lindsay.

"Here, hold her, Brooke." Nathan said, giving Lindsay to her. Brooke took her and nestled her into her arms and started cooing to her.

"Hello, Lindsay. I'm your Aunt Brooke. You're absolutely gorgeous." Brooke said to the baby. "Broody, you were right. She looks like Nathan."

"Babe, I'm always right." Lucas replied.

"Yeah, so am I." Nathan agreed. They both nodded, pretending to be serious.

"But she's got Haley's hair. And mouth." Brooke added.

"Yeah, that's what Nathan thinks." Haley said.

"Let me hold my beautiful niece." Lucas said. Brooke walked over to where he was sitting and handed Lindsay to him.

"Okay. So I'm not gonna be queer and practically sing to you like your aunt over there did, but I'll just tell you that I'm your Uncle Lucas. Welcome to the world, kiddo." He said to the sleeping baby. Everyone laughed. "Good luck with these parents of yours." Lucas joked. "They're seriously not going to know what to do with you. But you can always come stay at my house."

"Yeah, because you also have a lot of experience with parenting." Nathan laughed.

"You bet. Actually, this is the first time I've held a baby in forever." Lucas admitted.

"And it won't be the last for awhile, so get used to it." Haley said.

"Does that mean we're going to be doing a lot of babysitting?" Brooke asked.

"Well, in the future for sure. Right now she's gonna stay with me all the time." Haley said proudly. "But when Nathan goes back to work, I'm hoping you'd like to come over and keep me company."

"Of course!" Brooke squealed.

"So, you guys are gonna have to get yourselves one of these to keep up with us." Nathan asked Lucas and Brooke as he pointed towards Lindsay.

"Jesus, Nate. Let us get married first." Lucas said.

"I know. I'm just kidding." Nathan replied. Everyone laughed.

"Oh. I have a question for the both of you." Haley said to Brooke and Lucas. "Would you be willing to be Lindsay's godparents?"

"Absolutely!" Brooke exclaimed.

"We would be honored." Lucas said.

"Okay, good. Thank you." Haley said.

An hour past, and Karen and Keith as well as Nathan's Uncle Cooper arrived, and Brooke and Lucas finally decided they'd leave.

"So, we're godparents now, Broody." Brooke said as she and Lucas walked out of the hospital hallway and onto the elevator hand-in-hand.

"Yes we are." He agreed, pressing the button that would take them down to the lobby. There was no one else in the elevator, so Brooke decided to take advantage of it. She pulled him over to her and gave him a long and passionate kiss before the elevator beeped, telling them they were on the lobby. They quickly cleaned themselves up before the doors opened.

"That was random." Lucas said as they walked through the lobby.

"Yeah. I was caught in the moment." She said.

"You should be caught in the moment more often." He joked. She laughed.

"Did I ever tell you about when I thought I was pregnant?" Brooke asked Lucas. His eyes widened.

"Pregnant? When?" He asked, stopping in his tracks.

"Not recently, Luke! I meant like, when I was eight." Brooke said. He continued walking.

"Okay. So it wasn't like at all during the time when we were together, but god, you were having sex when you were eight?" He asked.

"Calm down. I was not having sex when I was eight. I kissed a boy and my friend told me I could get pregnant from that. So I panicked until I found out it wasn't true." She told him. He laughed.

"Thank god." Lucas said.

"Yeah." She agreed. They got into their car and Brooke immediately turned the heat on.

"I hate that it's getting colder." Brooke said.

"Yeah. But it's not as cold here as it is in New York." Lucas told her.

"True." She replied. "Okay. Let's put some music on."

"Okay. But none of that Britney Spears crap." Lucas told her.

"I know, I know. I'll just put on the radio." Brooke said. She pushed the button and the sounds of Kenny Chesney's 'Me and You' filled the car.

_Ordinary, no_

_Really don't think so_

_Not a love this true_

_Common destiny_

_We were meant to be_

_Me and you_

"Aw, I love this song!" Brooke exclaimed. She sang along to the sweet words as Lucas nodded and smiled until the end of the song.

"That should be our wedding song." He said.

"It definitely should be." She agreed.

"Perfect." Lucas said. Brooke took a deep breath in excitement. The song said it all. She and Lucas were meant to be - there were no questions about it.


	13. I Could Not Ask For More

**Author's Note:** Hey everyone! I'm terribly sorry for the delay! I've been so busy since school started. It's insane. I totally miss the summer. But I won't ramble on, here's Chapter 13. Read and please review! Thanks!

Chapter 13 - I Could Not Ask For More

"Nathan, can you hand me the hat that matches this outfit?" Haley asked as she was dressing Lindsay to bring her home from the hospital.

"This one?" Nathan said, holding up a little pink hat.

"That's the one." Haley told him.

"I don't know how this tiny little thing can actually fit a person." Nathan said as he handed Haley the hat.

"Yeah. I suppose it's a little bit surprising." Haley agreed.

"Alright, Mr. And Mrs. Scott." Nancy, the nurse who had been taking care of Haley and Lindsay, said as she walked into the room. "Ready to bring little Lindsay home?"

"I think so." Nathan told her.

"Do you have any questions or anything?" Nancy asked.

"No. I think we're good. Dr. Brown was just here and answered all the questions we had. But thank you." Haley said.

"Not a problem. It's been good taking care of all of you. If you ever have an emergency or question feel free to call me." Nancy said.

"We will. Thank you so much." Haley said, giving her a hug.

"Of course." Nancy said. She bent down to where Lindsay was sleeping in her carrier. "Bye, Lindsay."

With that, Nancy left the room while another nurse came in with a wheelchair to bring Haley out to her car. It was hospital policy that Haley had to be brought out in a wheelchair. Nathan turned on the video camera and followed them out. They got into the car and Haley sat with Lindsay in the back seat while Nathan drove.

"Finally. It's just the three of us." Nathan said as he pulled out of the hospital and headed back home.

"Yup. But that might not be so pleasant just yet. Wait until she wakes up screaming at three in the morning." Haley said.

"Nah. Not my baby girl." Nathan said proudly.

"Hear that, Linds. You're only three days old and you've already gotten yourself wrapped around your father's finger." Haley said as she grazed Lindsay's cheek. Nathan laughed.

"Brooke and Lucas are gonna be there when we get home. Lucas took a long lunch so he could be there." Nathan told Haley.

"Oh, that was nice of him." Haley said.

"Yeah. I'm glad we've had and will continue to have them so close through all of this." Nathan said.

"Me too." Haley agreed.

Meanwhile, Brooke and Lucas were rushing around getting Nathan and Haley's house ready for Lindsay's homecoming.

"No, it's off center, Broody. It needs to be a little more to the left." Brooke told Lucas, who was standing on a small ladder tacking a 'Welcome Home, Lindsay' banner in the foyer.

"Sweetheart, I know you want to make this perfect. But I honestly don't think Nathan, Haley or Lindsay would care if this banner was just a few inches more to the left." Lucas said, stepping off of the ladder.

"I know. I know. Okay. Is everything else set?" Brooke asked, looking around the room, which was filled with pink and white balloons and streamers.

"I think so." Lucas said. Brooke opened up the front door and looked out onto the front lawn to make sure the 'It's a Girl!' stork that sat out on the front lawn was still perfectly in place and the balloons attached to it hadn't flown away. Then she saw Nathan's car down the road.

"Omigod! Here they come!" Brooke said, grabbing her coat and putting it on to greet Nathan, Haley and Lindsay on the driveway. Lucas followed her. Nathan pulled into the driveway and got out to help Haley out of the car.

"Hi guys. Thanks for the stork." Nathan said. He opened up the back door and Haley practically jumped out.

"Hi!" She squealed, giving them both hugs.

"How are you?" Brooke asked.

"Great. I love the stork. I always wanted one." Haley said. "Oh! Let's bring Lindsay inside."

Nathan took the carrier out of the car seat base and walked her towards the door, Haley following while Brooke took pictures. They opened it up and saw the banner and pink balloons and immediately smiled.

"This is gorgeous. Thank you." Haley said.

"Yeah. You didn't have to do through this much trouble." Nathan told Brooke and Lucas.

"Please. It wasn't a big deal. And it had to be perfect." Brooke said.

"Well, Welcome Home, Lindsay." Haley said to the baby, who was beginning to stir.

"Let me take a picture!" Brooke said, grabbing the camera from the table against the wall. Nathan picked up Lindsay out of her carrier and Haley stood next to him and Brooke took a picture.

"God, I'm gonna want to burn that picture when I get back to my normal shape." Haley said.

"But you really didn't gain that much weight. You look really good." Brooke told her.

"Thanks. But I do have to shed some pounds." Haley explained. At that point, Lindsay started to cry.

"Alright, we're gonna get out of your hair. I have to get back to work. Have fun, you guys. Call us if you need us." Lucas said, giving them some last hugs before leaving with Brooke. Carrying Lindsay, Nathan went into the den and sat on the couch, and Haley followed, trying to figure out what Lindsay needed.

"Okay. Bottle maybe? Diaper?" She asked.

"I think she needs to be fed." Nathan said.

"Okay. I'll go get a bottle then." Haley told him. Lindsay continued to cry as Nathan rocked her and a minute later, Haley brought a bottle back to him. Nathan placed it in Lindsay's mouth and she immediately stopped crying and started drinking it.

"Okay. That was easy." Nathan said. "Do you want to feed her?"

"No, it's okay. We can take turns." Haley said. Sitting in the chair adjacent to where Nathan was sitting, she watched him feed the baby and she smiled. She could tell he was in love with his daughter just by the way he stared at her. "I hope you don't get offended by this or anything, but I never pictured you being this comfortable with the baby." He laughed.

"No, I totally agree. I thought I'd be a nervous wreck. I guess it just feels natural." Nathan told her.

"Yeah. I can't even believe she's actually here. It feels like yesterday when I found out I was pregnant." Haley said.

"Yeah. You always think it's so far away. Then all of sudden it happens. And now we've got ourselves a baby." Nathan said, laughing a little.

"Yeah. It's funny." She said. Nathan paused to look back down at Lindsay before responding.

"I'm really happy, Haley." He told her.

"So am I." She said. With that, she left her seat from the chair and cuddled up next to Nathan. Soon both Haley and Lindsay were asleep in his arms, and he was loving every second of it.

---

Brooke and Lucas parted ways outside of Nathan and Haley's since Lucas had to return to work, so Brooke returned home with nothing to do. She walked into the house and the phone was beeping, signaling they had received messages. She pushed the play button and the messages started playing.

"You have two new messages." The robot voice told her. Soon she heard a man's voice.

"This is Jay from Blockbuster, letting you know that you have a movie that's overdue and nee-" He said, before Brooke immediately hit delete and rolled her eyes. The second messages began playing.

"Brooke, darling." A woman said. Brooke immediately recognized the voice. "It's your mother. I just wanted to let you know that your father and I will be in town tomorrow. This will probably be the last time we'll be around for a while, so hopefully you'll let us visit. Give us a call."

_Fabulous. How did they even get my freakin' number?_

Brooke checked the caller I.D. to see what number her mother had called from and decided to ignore it for now. She was beginning to get a headache so she decided to lay down. Before she knew it she was asleep.

Four hours later, Lucas returned home from work to find Brooke sound asleep on the couch. He threw his suit jacket and tie over the lounge chair and laid down next to Brooke on the couch. She immediately awoke from her nap when she felt movement.

"Broody?" She said groggily. "Omigod! What time is it?"

"It's almost five-thirty. You must have fallen asleep." Lucas told her.

"For four hours? God, I didn't even realize." Brooke said.

"It's okay. It's not like there was anything else to do." Lucas said. She sat there playing with his fingers before throwing them down in frustration.

"Ugh. I almost forgot. My mother called. My parents are gonna be in the area tomorrow, so they want to see me. Honestly, I don't want to see them, though." Brooke told Lucas. She looked at him, and he could see in her eyes that she needed advice.

"I don't know what to tell you, Brooke. If you want to see them, that's fine. I'll come with you. But if you don't, no one's going to force you to." Luke explained. Brooke sighed and thought about the last time she saw her parents. It was about four years ago, during her first year of college at UNC.

"_Brooke! You finally decided to show up! We're just about to leave!" Helen Davis said with an angry tone when she opened the door of the hotel to find her daughter standing there, soaking wet from being out in the pouring rain._

"_Well, I apologize for being such an inconvenience, but I had classes all day and I got here as soon as I could." Brooke told them._

"_Oh. I see." Helen said. There was a silence._

"_Okay. It's raining out here. Do you think you could let me come in for, like, two seconds?" Brooke asked._

"_I suppose. We really do have to be going now, though." Helen said._

"_Fine. You know what? If you're travels and business are more important to you than your daughter, then forget it. I've tried to mend our relationship before, but I'm done. Have a nice life."_ _Brooke said before storming off back into the rain, tears silently falling down her face as she got back into her car and drove off._

"I don't think I can do it, Luke. I told both my parents and myself that I was done years ago. And I have to stick to my word. There's no way we can fix things now. It would just cause too much pain." Brooke told him.

"Okay, babe. I'll support you completely." Lucas told her.

"Thanks, Luke." She said before giving him a kiss. She looked deep into his gorgeous blue eyes. "I don't know what I'd do without you."

"You don't ever have to worry about it." He told her, giving her another kiss.

"Okay. What are we doing for dinner?" Brooke asked.

"I don't know. But I thought that maybe whatever we made we'd make a double batch and bring some over for Nathan and Haley. Even if they don't end up eating it tonight at least they can just have stuff to heat up for tomorrow or something." Lucas said. "Then Thursday is Thanksgiving already. We're gonna take care of that, right?"

"Of course. And I was thinking about making them dinner earlier, it's funny that you mentioned it." Brooke said.

"Great minds think alike." Lucas said. She laughed before getting up.

"Okay, cheesy boy, want to come help me make dinner?" Brooke asked.

"Of course. I'm gonna get changed though. I'll meet you in the kitchen in a few minutes." Lucas told her. She nodded and went into the kitchen and Lucas went upstairs. She decided to call Nathan and Haley.

Meanwhile, over at the other Scott household, Nathan and Haley were enjoying some peace while Lindsay slept. They napped for a little while themselves, figuring they might as well sleep when she slept, fearing they'd all be up all night. They were watching TV when the phone rang. Nathan got up and saw on the caller I.D. that it was Brooke and Lucas, so he picked it up smiling.

"Hello?" He said.

"Hey, Nate. It's Brooke. How are you guys holding up over there?" She asked.

"We're okay. Lindsay's sleeping a lot, which is probably not good because now she'll be up all night." He told her.

"Yeah. Oh well. Eventually she'll get on a schedule and everything will be normal. It's just this next week that's gonna be tiring and hectic. But don't worry, Lucas said you don't have to come back to work for awhile." Brooke said.

"I know. But I think I'm gonna go back next week. We'll somehow have figured out a schedule by then so there won't be as much of a need for two of us. Plus, she has you." Nathan told her.

"Definitely. Okay, so I was calling to ask if you guys had dinner yet." Brooke stated.

"No, actually. That kind of slipped my mind." Nathan said, realizing it was already five-thirty.

"Perfect. Don't worry about anything then. I'm going to make a double batch of spaghetti and meatballs and I'll have Luke drop some off for you." Brooke said.

"You don't have to, Brooke." Nathan said.

"No, I insist." She told him.

"Okay. Thank you so much then." Nathan replied.

"No problem. Lucas will be over in an hour. Talk to you guys later. Tell Haley and Lindsay I said hello." Brooke said.

"Sure. Thanks again, Brooke." Nathan finished before hanging up the phone. He got back over onto the couch where Haley and he had been watching TV.

"So I'm gonna take a wild guess and say that that was Brooke." Haley joked.

"Wow. Such a good guess." He said, playing around. "Yeah. That was her. Lucas is gonna drop off spaghetti and meatballs for us in about an hour."

"Mmm. That sounds good. Maybe they'll make dinner for us every night." Haley said.

"Hales." Nathan whined.

"I'm just kidding. I was actually planning on making something but I guess Brooke beat me to it." Haley commented.

"Yeah." He agreed. Just then, Lindsay started to cry.

"Lindsay, Lindsay, Lindsay." Haley said, picking her daughter up from the rocker and cradling her into her arms. "What can I do for you?"

"Wouldn't it be so much easier if she could answer?" Nathan said.

"Definitely." She agreed. "But for now we're just gonna have to learn all her different cries."

"Yeah. It was worth a shot, though." Nathan joked as he tried to help Haley figure out what it was that Lindsay needed. After realizing she needed a diaper change, they watched TV until Lucas came over with dinner, and had an unusually peaceful first night at home with Lindsay.

* * *

P.S. - For all the big Brooke and Lucas fans, check out my one-shot "Trapped Inside." And review it! Thanks. Oh, and review this story, too! 


	14. Seasons of Love

**A/N:** Hey everyone! I'm sooo sorry that I've taken so long to update this. Junior year's killinggg me. Anyway, hopefully most of you are still interested, so here's chapter 14! Read and let me know what you think! Reviews make my life a better thing. Seriously.

Chapter 14 - Seasons of Love

For the first time, Brooke and Lucas had taken charge of Thanksgiving. Haley loved Thanksgiving and everything about it, so normally she would have the whole thing planned six months in advance. This time, she let Brooke take over and just let herself relax and enjoy Lindsay's first Thanksgiving.

Brooke and Lucas spent the whole morning cooking away. The turkey was in the oven, all sorts of vegetables were boiling and potatoes were being mashed.

"I guess it's a good thing we both can cook." Brooke said as she stirred some of the vegetables. "Otherwise we'd have to, like, order in or something. And Haley wouldn't be too happy about that." Lucas laughed.

"That is correct. Okay, so are we sure we have enough plastic containers to get all of this over to Nathan's?" Lucas asked.

"I'm pretty sure we do. Everything's almost done, I think." She said.

"Good. Why don't you go ahead and get dressed? You always take longer than me, so I can wait a few minutes to put everything into containers." Lucas suggested.

"Yeah, maybe I'll do that. Thanks, Luke." Brooke said, giving him a quick kiss before making her way out of the kitchen and upstairs to get ready. She took a quick shower and was finishing blow-drying her hair when Lucas came up to shower. Brooke went into the closet while Lucas was still showering to get dressed, singing a Christmas song to herself.

"Cause, baby, all I want for Christmas is you." She sang in her underwear and bra. She was so caught up in the song and deciding what to wear that she jumped when Lucas came up from behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist.

"Broody, you scared me!" Brooke exclaimed, turning around while still in his embrace.

"What, you forgot that I live here, too?" He asked.

"No. I just...I don't know. I guess I was too busy singing." Brooke said, letting out a giggle.

"Yes, you were. And Christmas isn't even for another month." He agreed. He pulled away from her and walked over to his side of the closet.

"I know! But all the music stations start playing Christmas music today. Anyway, what should I wear?" Brooke asked, looking up at all of her clothes in their huge walk-in closet.

"I think what you have on is just fine." Lucas joked.

"Yeah. If we were going to the Playboy Mansion for Thanksgiving dinner." Brooke said. Lucas laughed.

"Well, it might not be too late to change plans..." He told her, pretending to act serious.

"Oh, please." Brooke said, grabbing a brown skirt and dress top from the rack. Lucas chuckled and took a pair of khakis and dress shirt from his shelf. They both got dressed and Brooke went back into the bathroom to put makeup on. Soon enough they were both downstairs taking all the food out to the car and making their way to Nathan and Haley's. Karen, Keith and Deb had already arrived when Brooke and Lucas got there.

"Oh, let me grab something!" Haley said as she helped Brooke through the door. She took two containers from the top of Brooke's pile.

"Happy Thanksgiving!" Karen said as she gave both Brooke and Lucas hugs as they made their way to the kitchen. Nathan made his way into the kitchen with a Lindsay. Brooke immediately lit up upon seeing the baby.

"Hi, Linds!" Brooke cooed in a high voice.

"Nice to see you, too, Brooke." Nathan joked.

"Oh, Nate. I almost forgot. Happy Thanksgiving." Brooke replied sarcastically.

"Here. You want to hold her?" Nathan asked.

"Of course!" Brooke squealed, taking her almost-niece into her arms.

In no time at all, dinner was over and everyone was sitting around the table. Lindsay was sleeping in her swing close to where Nathan and Haley were both sitting, and the adults were all chatting away while they had dessert.

"So, Nathan and Lucas, how has work been?" Keith asked.

"Good, actually. We both actually enjoy it." Lucas explained. Nathan nodded in agreement.

"When are you going back to work, Nate?" Deb asked.

"Wednesday." Nathan told her.

"That's good." Deb said. "Oh, before I forget, I wanted to let everyone know that I'm going to have Christmas at my house this year."

"Are you sure?" Karen asked.

"Definitely. It's something I've wanted to do for a long time." Deb told the group.

"Okay." "Cool." "That'll be nice." They all replied.

"Brooke, you should have invited Peyton over." Haley said.

"I thought about it. But she was going to spend Thanksgiving with Jake's family anyway." Brooke explained.

"It's so weird that they're dating." Nathan said.

"I know. He was like, our good friend from high school. I like that we get to see him once in a while now." Lucas said.

"Yeah." Nathan said. "Weren't you thinking about making him part of the wedding party?"

"Yeah. I think I am actually. I mean, we were really close in high school, but we just kind of parted ways after that. But now that we see each other again, it's like we were never even apart." Lucas told him.

"That's good, Luke." Brooke commented. Lindsay then started to cry. Nathan turned around and took her out of her swing. She stopped crying to a little but continued to fuss.

"She's hungry. I'll go get a bottle." Haley said, getting up and running into the kitchen.

"Yes. Don't worry, we're going to feed you, too." Nathan said to Lindsay. She started crying again. "Oh, Linds. The dramatics."

Brooke and Lucas laughed. Everytime they talked to Nathan he'd talk about how Lindsay may look like him, but she was dramatic like Haley. Haley returned with a bottle and started to feed the baby while the rest of the group continued to talk. An hour later, Deb, Keith and Karen left and Brooke and Haley finished cleaning up while Lucas and Nathan watched a basketball game in the den.

"So how are you feeling, Hales?" Brooke asked.

"I'm fine actually. Better than I thought I would be. I mean, I am tired, but that's a given when you have a six-day-old baby." Haley explained. The girls laughed.

"You think you're gonna be okay when Nathan goes back to work?" Brooke asked.

"Yeah. I'll be fine." Haley assured her. "We're so lucky that Lindsay's been this good so far. It's like, we've been home for three days and we're already on somewhat of a schedule."

"Yeah. I'm glad for you guys." Brooke told her.

Meanwhile, Nathan and Lucas watched a basketball game and Lindsay slept on Nathan's chest.

"Damn. That was a good shot." Lucas said. Nathan nodded. Then the game went to a commercial.

"Ever wish we continued playing basketball?" Nathan asked.

"Sometimes. But then I think about how great my life has been this far. If I went to a big basketball school, I probably would not have met Brooke. You and I wouldn't be so close, this whole thing with Scott Motors couldn't have happened." Lucas explained.

"Yeah. I agree. I remember a time when there was nothing more that I wanted to do then play basketball. Then I met Haley. And then there was nothing more that I wanted to do then be with her." Nathan told him.

"Yeah." Lucas said. "I remember you telling me when you first met Haley that you knew for sure that you were going to spend the rest of your life with her. And I never believed you until I met Brooke. I feel like the second you meet that one special person, you can feel it in your heart that they're the one."

"Exactly." Nathan said with a smile. The game came back on and it grabbed their attention, but Nathan placed a quick kiss on his daughter's head before gluing his eyes to the screen.

Ten minutes later, Haley and Brooke entered the room.

"Okay, Lucas. Let's get out of their hair and go home." Brooke said.

"Okay." He said as him and Nathan got up.

"Thanks, Nate." Lucas said, shaking his hand.

"For what? I didn't even do anything. Thanks to you guys for cooking and everything." Nathan said.

"No problem." Lucas replied.

They said the rest of their goodbyes and Brooke and Lucas headed home.

"It's only seven o'clock." Brooke stated as she looked at the clock while Lucas drove the two blocks back to their house.

"And?" He asked.

"It's still early." Brooke told him.

"Do you have anything that you want to do?" Lucas asked.

"No. Let's just go home and cuddle up on the couch. I have to get up tomorrow anyway." Brooke said.

"Why is that?" He questioned.

"Everyone knows the day after Thanksgiving is the biggest shopping day of the year! You can't possibly be left out!" Brooke exclaimed. He laughed.

"Gee, I almost forgot." Lucas joked, pulling in the driveway and then into the garage. And they did just that. Both put on pajamas and made popcorn and watched a movie for the rest of the night.

The next morning the alarm went off at seven, so Brooke hurriedly got out of bed and got dressed in hopes of finding the best deals at the mall. Lucas still slept but then jumped up when he heard a crash in the closet. He walked in to find Brooke standing there with her hand over her mouth, looking at the rack of clothes that fell onto the floor.

"Now that is a sign that you have way too many clothes." Lucas said, picking up the pole and trying to put it back into place on the wall.

"Of course not, Broody. You can never have too many clothes." She joked. The phone rang, and Brooke raised her eyebrows to Lucas as to say "who could that be?"

When she saw 'Scott, Nathan D." on the caller I.D., she didn't know whether to be alarmed or relieved.

"Hello?" Brooke answered.

"Hi Brooke. I was just calling to wish you luck on your shopping adventures. I wish I could go with you. But I don't think I'd physically be capable of a whole day of shopping." Haley said.

"Aw, Hales. I wish you could come. Anything you want me to pick up though?" Brooke asked.

"I guess just baby stuff if there's any super-spectacular deals." Haley told her, half laughing.

"Sure." Brooke replied.

"Okay. Thanks. I'll talk to you later." Haley said.

"Bye, Hales." Brooke ended.

Ten minutes later, Brooke was out the door and on the way to the mall. She first went to some baby stores and picked up a bunch of clothes and accessories for Lindsay, then, of course, she got clothes and shoes for herself. And some for Lucas, since it would only be fair if she bought some things for him, too. She returned home a little before three o'clock and Lucas and Nathan were going over some things for work at the kitchen table.

"Hello, boys." Brooke said.

"Hi, baby. Did you get anything good?" Lucas said, getting up from his seat.

"I did. Help me bring in these bags." Brooke said. Lucas and Nathan followed her out to the car and found the entire trunk and back seats filled with bags.

"Wow. Did you buy the whole mall, Brooke?" Nathan asked.

"Nah. I was nice and left some things for the others. But I guess I could if I wanted to." Brooke said, smiling at Lucas.

"No. That's not happening." Lucas stated. Nathan laughed as they carried in the remainders of the bags.

"Leave the bags with the baby clothes in the car. I have to bring those over to your house, Nate." Brooke told him.

"Okay. I can just grab them when I'm leaving." Nathan said.

"No, it's okay. I'm gonna head over there now. You guys can finish what you were doing before." Brooke explained. They nodded and Brooke went over to Haley's. She came home about an hour later and there was a box on the front step. She picked it up and squealed when she realized what it was. She ran into through the house and into the kitchen.

"Lucas! The invitations are here!" Brooke yelled. He appeared in the doorway a few seconds later.

"Are they? Open the box." Lucas said.

"Can't you see that's what I'm trying to do?" Brooke said, struggling with the tape that was holding the sides of the box together. Lucas got a pair of scissors and cut some of it off and Brooke pulled out a white box from the other box.

"Well, the box looks good." Lucas said. Brooke looked at him and shook her head. She pulled the lid off the top to reveal the gorgeous pearl white invitations.

_Mr. And Mrs. Ronald Davis_

_and_

_Mr. And Mrs. Keith Scott_

_request the honor of your presence_

_at the marraige of their children_

_Brooke Penelope_

_to_

_Lucas Eugene _

_Saturday, the twelfth of May_

_Two thousand and eleven_

_at four o'clock in the afteroon_

_Saint Lucy's Church_

_Raleigh, North Carolina_

Brooke pulled out an invitation and ran her hand across the floral border and silver text, greatly admiring it. Lucas watched her as she read it.

"It's perfect, Broody." She said.

"Yeah? Let me see." Lucas said. Brooke handed it to him. He read it and smiled.

"You're right." He said, walking over to her and wrapping his arms around her. "I can't wait."

"Me either." She said, draping her arms around her neck and giving him a passionate kiss.

Soon enough it would be Christmas and New Year's, and Brooke and Lucas were anxiously awaiting the months leading up to their wedding.


	15. You're My Better Half

**Author's Note:** For those of you who are still reading this, and thank you so very much if you are, I totally apologize for taking such a ridiculously long time to update. Life's just been crazy so it's difficult, so I'm doing the best I can. Anyway, here's chapter 15. It's kind of just a filler chapter, and I admit that it's rather boring, but don't worry - the wedding will be soon! So read & review. Reviewslove.

Chapter 15 - You're My Better Half

"Brooke, that dress is to die for!" Peyton exclaimed as she and Haley gazed at Brooke, who was standing on a stool in front of the mirror trying on her wedding gown. They were all at their last fittings at Maggie Filmore's store.

"I love it." Brooke said.

"Me too. God, how is the wedding in two weeks already? It feels like yesterday that the both of you came into my apartment after you got engaged." Haley said.

"I know. I'm so excited." Brooke told them. She looked at herself in the mirror, covered in the gorgeous lace and delicate beads that made up her dream wedding gown. Of course, this one was only for the ceremony. Brooke always wanted a strapless ball gown, but figured it wouldn't be so practical for dancing and greeting everyone at the reception, so she had an halter, A-line gown made as well.

"How about your dresses? Are they okay?" Brooke asked.

"They're fabulous. Good thing I lost that baby weight." Haley said.

"Yeah, mine's really great, too." Peyton said.

"Perfect. Okay. I guess we'll get going then." Brooke said. "Help me out of this?"

"We'll try." Peyton said, unzipping the back of the dress as Haley tried to help her jump out.

"Well. That wasn't as hard as I thought it would be." Brooke said as soon as she got onto the ground and put her clothes back on. Peyton and Haley laughed.

"Everything's finished with the boy's tuxedos, right?" Haley asked.

"Yeah, Lucas said they were all done a week ago." Brooke told her. Haley nodded.

"So did you get your wedding ring yet?" Peyton questioned.

"No, actually. We've kind of put that off for some reason. But Lucas and I are going tonight to find one that matches with my engagement ring." Brooke explained.

"That's good." Peyton said. With that, the girls left the store, and Brooke brought her dresses to Peyton's house to keep them there until the wedding. Peyton's house was closer to the church and Brooke would be getting ready there, plus she didn't want Lucas to see the dresses just yet.

Lucas came home at five o'clock that Friday night, ready to go ring shopping. He took a shower and he and Brooke hopped into the car and started on their search.

"So do you have any idea what you want?" Lucas asked.

"Well, I want it to match with my ring. But it doesn't have to be perfect or anything." Brooke told him. He nodded. "What about you?"

"I just want a plain band. Nothing too feminine." He told her. She laughed. "I remember when my mom and Keith got married."

"Well I would hope so. It was only, what? Five years ago?" She asked.

"Yeah. Right before I graduated high school." Lucas told her. "Anyway, she really wanted Keith to get a band that had diamonds on it, and Keith wanted nothing to do with it. He said it was too feminine. I agreed with him. That's why I don't want diamonds on mine."

"Yeah, I agree. I think you should get whatever you like, but diamonds on a guy's ring is kind of girly." Brooke said.

"Thank you. I'm glad I don't have to fight with you over this." Lucas said.

"Nah. We're good." Brooke said, smiling.

Lucas pulled into a parking spot at the same jewelry store that Lucas bought Brooke's engagement ring. He figured he'd have the best chance of finding something that matched well with Brooke's engagement ring there. They walked into the place hand-in-hand.

"Hi, can I help you?" A man asked.

"Yes, actually. We're looking for wedding bands." Lucas told the man.

"Great. I'm Richard." Richard said, shaking Lucas's hand.

"Lucas. Nice to meet you. And this is my fiancé Brooke." Lucas said.

"Nice to meet you." Brooke said, smiling.

"When's the wedding?" Richard asked.

"Two weeks from tomorrow." Brooke told him.

"Very nice. Okay. So here we have all the bands. Do you have anything in particular that you're looking for?" Richard asked.

"Well, I want a plain silver band. I don't know exactly what she wants." Lucas said.

"Nope. I've got it. I want that one." Brooke said, pointing to a platinum band that had small scattered diamonds on it that matched her engagement ring perfectly.

"That was fast." Richard said, sliding the glass doors over so he could take it out for her.

"Yeah. I really like it." Brooke said. She took the ring from his hand and put it on. It was a little big but looked fabulous with the engagement ring.

"Wow. That's gorgeous, Brooke." Lucas said.

"I know. This is the one. I just know it." She replied.

"Will that be the one or would you like to try any more on?" Richard asked.

"No, I'm gonna go with this one. I'm going to need a smaller size though." Brooke said. He took out a few smaller sizes from the bottom cabinet and she found her size.

"Okay. This one's perfect." Brooke said.

"Great. Now we can find something for you, Lucas." Richard said. He pulled out a few platinum and white gold bands of different thicknesses.

"I like the middle one." Brooke whispered. "It would match with mine."

"Yeah, I was thinking the same thing." Lucas said, pulling it off of the purple velvet cylinder it was on. He put it on and it was a perfect fit.

"How does that one fit?" Richard asked.

"This one's perfect actually. I'm gonna go with it." Lucas said.

"Okay. Let me get you a new one from the back." Richard said as he walked into a closet.

"That was easy." Brooke said.

"Yeah. I thought we'd be here for hours." Lucas said.

"I didn't. I knew I'd be able to find the perfect one quickly. It just stands out from the rest. Kind of like you did when I met you." Brooke said. He smiled.

"I stood out from the rest of your boyfriends?" He asked.

"You did, Broody." She said, giving him a peck on the lips. Richard returned with Lucas's ring.

"Will that be all?" Richard asked.

"Yes. That's all for today." Lucas told him. They rang up the purchases and Brooke left with the two boxes.

"Wanna go see my mom at the café?" Lucas asked.

"Yeah. I could go for a cappuccino right about now." Brooke said with a smile. "Should we show her the rings?"

"Yeah, if you want to." He said. She nodded. They walked across the street and into the café to find Karen behind the counter.

"Well, hello, my son and future daughter-in-law." Karen said upon seeing them.

"Hi, mom." Lucas said, giving her a hug.

"Hi, Mrs. Scott." Brooke said, also giving Karen a kiss and hug.

"I think you can start calling me mom if you'd like." Karen said to Brooke.

"I'd love to. Thanks, mom." Brooke said. Karen smiled widely.

"So I saw your car parked out there. Were you at the jewelry shop?" Karen asked.

"We were. We just bought our wedding bands. Do you wanna see?" Lucas asked.

"Of course!" Karen squealed. Brooke took the boxes out of the bag and opened the first one.

"This is Lucas's." Brooke said, handing her the box.

"This is very similar to Keith's." Karen said. Lucas nodded.

"And this is mine." Brooke said. Karen inspected the ring.

"It's gorgeous. Put it on so I can see it with the engagement ring." Karen said. Brooke slid it onto her finger. "Wow. Talk about a perfect match. It looks beautiful."

"Thank you." Brooke said as she looked at it herself before taking it off to put it back in the box.

"Where's Keith?" Lucas asked.

"He's in the kitchen doing work on something. Go back there and find out." Karen said. Lucas and Brooke walked into the back to find Keith with a wrench in his hand fixing the sink.

"Keith?" Lucas asked.

"Oh, Lucas. And Brooke. How are you guys?" Keith asked.

"Great. We got our wedding bands." Lucas said. Keith laughed.

"Did Brooke put up a fight with you over which one you should get?" Keith asked.

"Nah. I let him get what he wanted." Brooke said, handing him the boxes with the rings. He laughed at Lucas's.

"This one's practically the same as mine." Keith said.

"I know. That's what Mom said." Lucas told him.

"I bet you this one was more expensive though. Let me guess, it's platinum?" Keith said. Lucas nodded.

"Of course. And Brooke yours is beautiful, too. Nice choices." Keith said. "Let's go sit down."

Brooke and Lucas followed him out of the kitchen.

"Go ahead and grab a table, I'll bring some stuff over." Keith said and went over to the counter while Brooke and Lucas sat down. The four chatted over coffee for an hour before Lucas and Brooke decided to head home.

"That was a good night." Brooke said as she and Lucas walked into the house.

"It was." Lucas agreed. The two made their way to the kitchen.

"We didn't exactly have dinner." Brooke said.

"Yeah. We should probably eat something." Lucas said, opening up the refrigerator and then the freezer. "How about pizza?"

"Frozen? Or are we gonna order it?" Brooke asked as she looked at some envelopes that were on the counter.

"Well, I was thinking frozen but if you want to order we can do that too." He explained.

"Nah, frozen sounds fine." Brooke said. Lucas took the box out and read the instructions. He laughed.

"What's so funny?" Brooke questioned.

"It says 'Sell By May 12th 2011.'" He told her. She giggled.

"We should save that piece of cardboard." Brooke said.

"We should." Lucas agreed. He turned on the oven to pre-heat and sat down with Brooke at the kitchen table. She was looking at a catalog that arrived in the mail.

"You know, we still have to return a lot of stuff that I got from my bridal shower." Brooke said, putting down the catalog.

"We didn't get rid of it all?" Lucas asked.

"No. Haley and Peyton should have written on the invitations 'They've been living together for eight months and have everything they could possibly need besides what's on the registry. Please don't buy blenders and microwave ovens.'" Brooke explained. He chuckled.

"We'll just give the rest to charity." Lucas said.

"Yeah, that's a good idea. I'll look into that later." Brooke said, once again picking up the catalog and flipping through the pages.

"Are all the RSVP's in?" Lucas asked.

"I'm pretty sure they are. I can't believe my parents are going to make an attempt to come. I mean, they insisted on paying for it, but I didn't think they'd actually show up." Brooke said.

"I'm glad they're gonna be there, Brooke. I really think they want to try and work things out." He told her.

"Yeah. I guess so. Little by little it's getting better." Brooke said. She smiled. Just then, the oven beeped to signal it was completely heated. Lucas got up and put the pizza in the oven. He then sat back down at the table.

"You forgot to put the timer on, babe." Brooke said, not looking up from what she was reading.

"Right. God, what would I do without you?" He joked as he walked over to the oven. She laughed.

"Well, you would have burnt that pizza." She joked back. He chuckled. Soon enough, the pizza was ready and Brooke and Lucas spent a relaxing evening at home.

* * *

**A/N**: Okay so 1, review. And 2, if you haven't already, check out my oneshots, one's a Brooke and Lucas and the other is Nathan and Haley, and review those! ) Thanks! 


	16. Not a Moment Too Soon

**Author's Note: **I know, two months. I would hate me, too. But this is a good chapter. I think you guys will like it. However, although I didn't exactly plan it this way, this is gonna be the second to last chapter, because I'm stuck on where to go with it. I am gonna write a sequel though, which will take place about 18 years from now. I've got a few chapters written up for it already, so as soon as I finish the last chapter for this, I'll start posting the other one. Anyway, thank you so very much if you're still reading this. I don't blame you if you've given up on me. Reviews would be fabulous. Thanks, guys!

Chapter 16 - Not A Moment Too Soon

It was now Thursday, two days before the wedding. It was also Lucas's last day at work for another two weeks. He had been working hard all week, trying to get everything that needed to be done finished. Nathan was on the phone with Haley, who was telling him about new things Lindsay was doing. He looked around the room and on his desk and realized that he only had a few copies to make before he could go home to Brooke. Little did he know that Brooke would be visiting.

"Hello, Miss Davis." Bernadette, the secretary of Scott Motors said while Brooke walked across the lobby.

"Bernadette! How have you been? I haven't seen you in a few weeks." Brooke asked.

"I'm good. Excited for the wedding?" Bernadette asked.

"Absolutely. I'm so excited that I just had to come see Lucas." Brooke told her.

"How cute." Bernadette said, smiling. "I'm pretty sure he's in his office right now."

"Thanks." Brooke said, walking down the hallway. Looking through the office windows, she didn't see Lucas. She saw Nathan, talking on the phone. She waved at him and he waved back, looking around for Lucas because, he, too, didn't know where he went.

Lucas walked out of the copy room and saw Brooke down the hallway. He smiled that she had come to surprise him, but he decided it'd be funny if he surprised her instead. He quietly walked behind her and put his arms around her waist. She jumped in fright and turned around to see who it was.

"There you are!" Brooke squealed.

"Yup. I'm here." Lucas said, giving her a kiss.

"I missed you today. So I came to see you. That and I'm just really excited." She exclaimed. He laughed.

"I'm excited, too. I just have to put these papers away and we can go home." He told her. She followed him into the office.

"Hey, Nate." Brooke said.

"Oh. You found him." Nathan stated.

"Well, he kind of found me." Brooke joked. Nathan looked confused but then shook his head. Lucas put some papers into a folder and grabbed his jacket.

"Alright. We can go now." Lucas said to Brooke.

"Bye, guys." Nathan said. "Wait. What time's the rehearsal tomorrow?"

"Four o'clock." Brooke replied.

"Okay. I'll see you guys then." Nathan said. With that, Brooke and Lucas walked out of the office hand-in-hand.

"Tonight's our last night together as not-married-Brooke-and-Lucas." Brooke said.

"We're not getting married until Saturday." Lucas told her.

"Yes, but I'm gonna be at Peyton's tomorrow night. It'd be bad luck if we saw each other." Brooke said.

"If you insist." Lucas said. At this point, they had made it to the lobby.

"Bye, Bern. See you on Saturday." Lucas said.

"Can't wait! See you then!" Bernadette replied.

"She's too cute." Brooke said when they made it outside.

"Yeah. She's the best secretary." Lucas said. "Oh. We have separate cars, don't we?"

"Unfortunately. But we'll be home in five minutes." She said, giving him a quick kiss before walking towards her car. He watched her as she walked, kind of checking her out, he wasn't gonna lie, but mostly because he knew the next time he actually would be watching her walk would be her walking down the aisle.

Within five minutes, both Brooke and Lucas had made it home safely. Lucas plopped himself down onto the couch in the den and Brooke sat in his lap.

"So. No more work until we're officially Mr. And Mrs. Lucas... E. Scott." Lucas said.

"Just 'E'?'" Brooke questioned.

"Eugene is such a terrible name." Lucas said, pretending to be utterly disgusted by it. Brooke giggled.

"It's okay, baby. I don't think anyone will be paying attention to your middle name at the wedding." Brooke assured him. He kissed her.

"I think I need to take a shower." Lucas said. She nodded.

"I could...join you." Brooke suggested, raising an eyebrow.

"That might not be such a bad idea." Lucas agreed, getting up with Brooke still in his arms.

"Lucas! You're gonna drop me!" Brooke screamed. He stopped.

"Do you honestly think I'm gonna drop you?" Lucas asked.

"No. You love me too much to drop me. And you know damn well that if you do drop me, the wedding's off!" She joked. He laughed and continued their way up to the master bathroom.

"Alright. What are we having for dinner?" Brooke asked as she stepped out into the bedroom, towel drying her hair.

"I was thinking that maybe we should go out for dinner." Lucas suggested.

"I like that idea. Give me about an hour." Brooke told him, returning to the bathroom and shutting the door behind her. He sighed. Women. They always needed a good ten years to get ready for anything. He went downstairs and watched T.V.

Meanwhile, in the bathroom, Brooke grabbed her bag to take out some of her makeup. She flipped open her cell phone to see if she had any messages and her breath caught in her throat.

_Thurs. 05/10, 5:43 P.M._

She'd been so caught up with the wedding that she didn't realize she was late. Like, _late. _Almost two weeks to be exact.She took a deep breath. Okay, so maybe she was pregnant. Or maybe it was stress. Luckily, she had a pregnancy test underneath the bathroom sink for emergencies. This was definitely one of them. She read the directions and did what she had to, patiently waiting for five minutes to pass as she sat on the toilet seat.

She contemplated the situation. It wasn't like it would be bad if she was pregnant. Actually, it would be great. She and Lucas were planning on starting a family as soon as they got married, so, this could be the start. Lucas would be absolutely thrilled. She smiled, secretly hoping it would in fact tell her she was pregnant, but trying not to get her hopes up as it could very well just be a false alarm.

Five minutes had passed and she got up and slowly took the stick out of the cup. Before looking at it, she looked at the directions again, double checking the meanings of the signs. One line, not pregnant, two lines, pregnant. She turned the stick to face her nervously.

Two lines. She smiled and squealed. Oh, she just had to go tell Lucas. She flung the bathroom door open and ran down the stairs.

"Luke!" She shouted. He got up from the couch.

"What, baby?" He said. She laughed when he said 'baby.'

"I've got news." She told him, grinning widely.

"Okay..." He said slowly, raising an eyebrow.

"I'm pregnant!" Brooke exclaimed. His eyes widened and he smiled.

"Seriously?" He asked.

"Dead. I just took a test." She explained. He picked her up and spun her around, kissing her gently.

"This is great. I'm so excited." Lucas told her as they both sat down on the couch.

"I know." She agreed. He put a hand on her stomach. Obviously, there were no physical signs of her being pregnant yet, but just putting his hand there made him feel an instant connection with his future child.

"So when did you think you might be pregnant?" Lucas asked.

"When I looked at my phone ten minutes ago and realized the date already. You'd think since I've had May 12th stuck in my head so long that I'd realize what comes before that." She explained. He laughed.

"Whatever. It doesn't matter. I'm so happy." He told her. "I don't think this week could get any better."

"Me either." She agreed. They shared a passionate kiss.

"So now I think we should definitely go out for dinner to celebrate." Lucas said.

"I agree. I'm gonna go finish getting ready... Daddy." She said before giving him a quick kiss and getting up. He smiled. _Daddy._

He was gonna be a father. This is was gonna be amazing. Brooke was going to be a wonderful mother. He thought about whether it'd be a boy or girl and what they'd name it. He sat there for so long he didn't realize that Brooke was now ready to leave and was calling his name from the kitchen.

"What took you so long, Broody?" She asked, standing there in a flowing purple top with jeans and silver heels. God, she was gorgeous. And glowing.

"I was thinking." Lucas told her.

"I would ask about what, but I think I already know. But wait, was it good thinking or bad thinking?" She asked, now standing with him in the middle of the kitchen, her arms draped around his neck as he held her small waist.

"Good thinking. I can't wait until this baby arrives." He told her. She smiled and kissed him.

"Me either. But for now, we should probably go get dinner. I have to eat for two now, you know." Brooke said.

"I know. Let's go." Lucas said, grabbing her hand as they walked out to the car.

They had dinner and returned home to have their last romantic evening until their wedding night. They discussed a lot of things, the baby mostly, and they figured they'd hold off on telling everyone for a while, just to be safe. Plus, everyone would assume they were really happy about the wedding, so no one would even be suspicious.

---

The following day was busy. Brooke had a bunch of appointments and Lucas was busy seeing relatives that were coming from out of town. The rehearsal and rehearsal dinner were at four, and everything went nice and smooth.

Brooke and Lucas were now saying their goodbyes to each other. Brooke was staying at Peyton's with Haley and Lindsay and Nathan and Jake were going to stay with Lucas at his house.

"I can't believe that the next time I see you we'll be getting married." Lucas said as he held Brooke in his arms.

"I know. This whole year's gone so fast." Brooke said. She took a deep breath. "Okay. So this is it. I'll see you tomorrow. I love you."

"I love you, too." He told her, giving her a kiss. They parted and Brooke walked over to where Peyton, Haley and Lindsay were standing.

"Alright, girls. It's just us tonight." Brooke said, smiling.

"This is gonna be fun." Haley said. And it was. The girls had a fun night of movies and girl talk while the boys played NBA Live and had some good laughs. Before they knew it, both parties were fast asleep.

Brooke woke to the sound of Lindsay crying. She figured it was probably some crazy time in the middle of the night. She looked at the clock. _7:34._

"Omigod! I'm getting married in, like, 9 hours!" She yelled as she sat up in bed. Haley and Peyton both immediately woke up.

"You are! Oh, I'm so excited!" Haley squealed. She got up to tend to Lindsay.

"Wow. We better get up. We've got hair and make-up appointments to get to." Peyton said, jumping out of bed. Brooke squealed.

"Oh! We've got a present for you!" Haley said, coming back into the room with Lindsay in one arm and a wrapped box in the other.

"I love presents!" Brooke said. She tore open the box to reveal a black sweatsuit with 'Soon to Be Mrs. Scott' written on the back. She screamed. "Ah! I always wanted one of these! Thank you!"

"You're welcome. Now go put it on. We're going out for breakfast." Peyton said. The girls did just that and hair and makeup appointments followed. Brooke proudly paraded around in her sweatsuit all morning.

---

At three o'clock, the boys had just finished getting ready.

"Ready to get married?" Nathan said as he, Jake and Lucas stood in the living room of Nathan's house in their tuxes.

"I've been ready for a while now. I can't wait." Lucas said.

"I'm happy for you, bro." Nathan said as he hugged his older brother.

"Me too. But we better get going before we miss it." Jake joked. Nathan and Lucas chuckled before walking out the door.

Meanwhile, Brooke stood in front of the mirror in the dress for the ceremony. It was a perfect arrangement of white satin, lace and beads. Her hair was curled and pinned up loosely, with a few stray pieces framing her face. In the reflection of the mirror, she saw Haley walk into the room with Lindsay in her arms and Peyton followed. Haley cupped her free hand over her mouth and Peyton smiled widely.

"Brooke, I've never seen a bride look so beautiful in my life." Peyton said, giving her a hug.

"Thank you." Brooke said softly.

"I'm so glad you're officially going to be my sister-in-law." Haley told Brooke, also giving her a hug. Brooke smiled.

"Enough about me! Can we talk about how gorgeous the both of you look?" Brooke said, running her eyes up and down both of them in their light green dresses. Haley's hair was pinned up perfectly, and Peyton's was down in loose curls.

"Thanks." They both said in unison. All three laughed.

"Miss Lindsay, you look absolutely adorable in that dress! You're going to be the best flower girl ever!" Brooke said, tickling the six month old baby gurgled as she smiled at Brooke.

"Okay. We've got pictures to take and then it's time to go!" Brooke said before squealing as she, Peyton and Haley went out to the living room. Only an hour to go...


End file.
